Yui looked at everyone in the room. “Rain is water,” she explained. “It’s what the basic element ‘water’ looks like when given physical form. So I wondered: what would happen if I cast an amplification spell on the element water itself? As I predicted, I was able to use a water spell as a Liefe without needing anyone else’s help that way. Additionally, I can use naturally occurring elements for any spell I wish because they were never used in someone else’s magic or under anyone else’s control.”
Yui held out her lighter in front of her and lit it. To demonstrate what she was saying, she cast an amplification spell on the fire. The flame abruptly flared up, increasing in strength. Then she dispelled her magic, put out the flame, and put the lighter back in her pocket.
“Fire and water are difficult. The elements need to already have form, so you need to have them prepared. The element of earth can’t be used inside buildings because you need to be in a place with sand, soil, or some other kind of earth. Wind, which exists everywhere in the atmosphere, is easiest to use because you don’t have to prepare it or be in a specific place. But fire, water, and earth are visible, which makes them easier to visualize and handle than wind.”
The grandmaster solemnly listened to Yui speak, making sure not to miss a single word. As he did, he noticed something. “Wait, so you weren’t just casting a composite spell, you were also using synchronous magic?”
Whereas a composite spell combined multiple elements into one spell, synchronous magic meant casting more than one kind of spell at once. It was just as difficult as composite magic. The magic Yui had used against the grandmaster earlier had been a composite wind and fire spell, plus she’d cast an amplification spell at the same time in order to be able to use the elemental spell, which had made it synchronous magic.
“Yes, that’s right,” Yui replied.
Her reply was simple, but what she was saying was unthinkable. The grandmaster was aware that others saw his power as monstrously abnormal, but Yui went beyond that. He far surpassed her in combat strength and experience, but he strongly suspected that she was more knowledgeable and adaptable when it came to magic. Her discovery of a way to use elemental magic had come from a child’s unique flexibility and willingness to think outside the box—it must’ve been an enormous effort to turn her idea into a reality. The wealth of knowledge she possessed belied her young age. Her skill at manipulating magic and the sheer amount of magic energy she had at her disposal let her use both composite and synchronous magic. It was terrifying to think that she was only a girl of sixteen.
“I’m done explaining, so is there anything you don’t understand?” Yui asked her audience.
“No, I think I understand very well...just how abnormal you are!” the grandmaster exclaimed. Everyone nodded in sincere agreement. Then, he asked, “Actually, could other Liefes use that method?”
“Hmm, I wonder. As you know, nonelemental magic is difficult to handle, and being able to use synchronous magic is a necessary requirement...”
“So you have to be able to manipulate magic well enough and have enough magic energy to be able to cast a nonelemental spell and synchronous magic at the same time. But if they fulfill those conditions, can anyone do it?”
“I’ve never seen a Liefe besides myself doing it, so I can’t say for certain, but I think it can be done. The only thing I can say is that you don’t know until you try.”
“I see. The logic behind it makes sense. But I want to know how far you can go using that method, so show us some other spells.”
“Huh?!” Yui exclaimed, her mouth tightening.
She repeatedly and vehemently protested and resisted, but it was pointless against the grandmaster. General Kieran and the cardinal were just as interested in the level of magic she could cast, and they joined in too. In the end, Yui ended up having to cast spells, one after the other—from very basic, beginner-level spells to highly difficult ones. The three men were so excited that no one was able to stop them, and ultimately, Yui collapsed, exhausted, from casting too many spells. This ending was only to be expected; though she had used amplification spells to increase her magic energy and reduce her energy consumption, she had to cast difficult synchronous magic over and over.
Carlo turned white as a sheet. He shouted as he carried Yui to the infirmary, and a massive commotion ensued. The three powerful men who had made Yui cast so many spells all got a lecture from Berg, and one of them mumbled, “It’s like being back in my student days.” Standing off to the side, Cecil used his magic communicator to contact someone, and not a single person noticed him.
✦ ✦ ✦
Yui quickly recovered after getting some sleep in the infirmary, but after that, tragedy struck for the grandmaster. Layce learned from Cecil about the grandmaster’s potentially fatal use of magic against Yui, and he naturally exploded with rage.
Not even an hour later, the grandmaster started receiving messages from panicked guild members. The guild was a line of work that often involved combat, and guild members spent much of their money on weapons and armor. The guild purchased rare, high-quality ores from Orthyria, refined them, and sold the materials at a price lower than usual to its members. But out of the blue, the singular trading company in Garlant that imports ore from Orthyria suddenly said they would stop doing business with the guild. The guild didn’t need those specific ores to make equipment, but the quality was certainly better with it. Losing access to that ore supply would be a hard blow.
And that wasn’t all—the son of the Melphis family, which controlled the criminal underworld and had their own large intelligence network, said that he would restrict the information the guild could purchase. The grandmaster had a bad feeling that these two sudden problems had been planned, so he contacted the son of the Melphis family.
“I can’t refuse him when he threatens me in such a scary voice, y’know? Oh, by the way, the trading company is our joint venture, so you’ll have to do something about the Prince of Darkness first. He won’t listen to me even if I ask, so go bow and scrape before Yui if you want to convince him, okay? Bye!”
The grandmaster was silent. After that, he continued to receive messages of protest, yelling at him to do something about it. He never would have thought that there was any connection between the Melphis family—which was influential both in public and behind the scenes—and Layce.
The grandmaster went right to Yui. He looked like he was about to cry, and he prostrated himself in front of her, not caring how it looked to anyone around them. Yui didn’t know what was going on, so she just looked at the grandmaster with a greatly strained expression. When she learned of what had happened, she contacted Layce on the spot and everything ended without incident. Still, everyone there was reminded why it was never wise to defy the Prince of Darkness.