I am telling you I’ll burn you, you brat!!

"You what…?"

Elira questioned as the book she was 'reading' fell out of her hands.

"Did you say you feel full?"

Elira questioned, and Kael nodded.

Elira narrowed her eyes and pointed at one of the targets Kael aimed at before.

"Shoot at it," she ordered.

"Alright."

Kael nodded as he then recalled the three steps to cast a spell. He formed the circle, runes, and connected the direction lines and,

Flicker

Whoosh

The fireball he created rushed towards the target. This time it didn't fade away like it did the last time.

Kael, however, missed the target by a few inches, and,

Boom

The fireball shot at the walls of the training hall and exploded.

"Oh? That must have happened because of the Explosion Rune, correct?"

Kael questioned with a curious look on his face. Soon, however, his expression changed as he heard a voice.

[Ding!]

[Fireball]

[Mastery: Very Low]

[Description:]

[A basic offensive spell that gathers fire elements to create a condensed ball of flames. Upon impact, it unleashes explosive damage in a small radius. Effective for ranged combat and area attacks.]

[Name: Kael Carter]

[Race: Human]

[Age: 22]

[Level: 2]

[CE: 159/200]

[Talent: Dragon Genesis]

[Talent Rank: SSS Rank]

[Strength: 10]

[Agility: 8]

[Speed: 9]

[Stamina: 12]

[Defence: 11]

[Mana: 3]

[Intelligence: 7]

[Charisma: 7]

…

'My CE increased again.'

Kael's smile widened, but then, a question appeared in his head.

'Why didn't I receive this notification before?

Is it because I couldn't fire it at full efficiency before?'

Before Kael could think more, Elira's voice interrupted him.

"You actually did it…"

Kael turned towards her and noticed the shock on her face.

"You meditated and filled your Mana Core...

In your first attempt and... that too...

In an hour?"

"Was I not supposed to do it?"

Kael questioned as he tilted his head in confusion.

"You do it on purpose, don't you?"

Elira questioned directly as she stared at Kael with a deadpan look on her face.

"What do you mean?"

Kael tilted his head in confusion, the wide grin on his face, however, gave it away.

"I knew it!!

Acting all oblivious and confused whenever you do something absurd—it's all on purpose, isn't it!?"

Elira shouted and Kael had no words to defend himself.

Of course, he knew how absurd his talent was!

All those novels he had read weren't just for decoration, even a child could tell what the broken affinity crystal meant!

Heck, Kael was even expecting to see it not react at all because it was unable to measure his talent because of how high it was.

Yes, he knew all the troupes.

He was connected to a fucking Dragon for Lord's sake! Of course, he will be talented as fuck!

Those numerous fire elements he saw, how easy it was to control them, and how quickly he learned how to cast his first spell, all that pointed to how good he was.

So why act confused?

It was to get back at this woman, of course.

Kael couldn't describe how amusing her expressions were everytime he did something crazy, how could he miss such pure entertainment?

And now that he was caught, he decided to raise his hands in surrender and,

"Guilty as charged."

He surrendered, the amused look on his face, however, didn't vanish.

After all, he could see the Court Mage's body twitching nonstop, he wanted to see what she would do next.

But...

He might have gone a little too far this time.

"Alright, that's it!

I'll roast you alive, you little show-off!"

Elira shouted as suddenly, around seven big Containment Circles formed right in front of her. Kael widened his eyes in horror.

'W-What is that…?'

Seeing the sheer size of the Containment Circles, which were about five times bigger than his, shocked Kael to his core.

'And to think there's seven of them…'

It didn't take long for Kael to realize it.

The Court Mage…

She was actually trying to kill him!

"Oi, Oi, calm down!"

Arlan, however, quickly grabbed his sister from behind, saving the Nerathis Hero.

"Let me go! I'll scorch this brat up!"

Elira shrieked, kicking wildly.

Arlan, however, already used to her antics, lifted his sister in the air as if she were a sack of potatoes and turned towards Althea.

"I'll be taking her away. Magic Training's over for the day."

Althea nodded as she appeared next to Kael.

Arlan took Elira away. However, even as she neared the doors of the training hall, she continued to resist her gorilla of a brother and glared at Kael.

"Don't let me see you tomorrow!

I am telling you I'll burn you, you brat!!

I mean it!!"

At the same time, she also bit her brother's shoulder and,

"I left my book in there! At least let me get that!"

"Don't you have like 100 copies of that darned book in your room? Shut up and come with me in silence!"

"I can't let others read that masterpiece! I am gatekeeping it! Bring me my book, you brute!"

Elira shouted, biting Arlan's shoulder again. The Commander, however, completely ignored her words and took her away out of the training hall.

"I'll burn you together with him! I'll tell Mother!"

"Yes, yes, go for it."

"…"

"…"

Kael and Althea stood in awkward silence, the distant commotion was still faintly audible.

"So… um…"

Kael cleared his throat.

"About my Mana Core? Why can't I store more mana inside it? Am I not going to get an answer to that question?"

Althea turned towards the hero with her expressionless face.

"The feeling of 'fullness' you're experiencing means your Mana Core has reached its capacity. Forcing more mana into it would cause it to shatter. To prevent that, your body instinctively resists it."

Kael nodded slowly, though a question was already forming on his lips.

"But if—"

Before he could question, Althea cut him off. It was as if she already knew what he was going to ask.

"Growing your Mana Pool is a gradual process. You can't just absorb fire elements endlessly and expect to grow stronger overnight. If that were possible, anyone could become a Master Mage in a few years."

Kael raised an eyebrow but remained silent as she continued.

"A Mage's path is slow and demands hard work and patience.

You must exhaust your mana reserves by casting spells, then meditate to replenish them. Each cycle strengthens your Mana Core, expanding its capacity and increasing your Mana Pool.

This is how you advance as a Mage."

Althea's answers were clear.

"Uhh…"

Kael stared at her for a moment and then,

"Why did I need her again? You already know everything. Why can't you teach me? I think that would be much more efficient."

"Please do not doubt the King's decision, Lord Kael.

Lady Elira may act like this, but she is an excellent Mage and a Teacher. Countless Mages, even the ones stronger than me, would kill for the opportunity to be taught by her."

"I highly doubt I would make it alive if I learn under her…"

Kael commented.

"You are a Hero. You will survive."

Althea nodded reassuringly. To Kael, however, those words were anything but reassuring.

"Anyways, does Lord Kael need me to heal your fatigue again?"

"Hmm? Sure."

Kael shrugged.

Althea's magic felt good.

Her next words, however, did not.

"You will need it for your next training."

"What…?"

Kael couldn't believe what he was hearing.