1,000,000 Karma: My Reward Is a Quiet Life-Chapter 67: The Study of Magecraft

"Haaah, what a day..." Noah sat, immediately flopping onto a bed, letting himself sink into the mattress.

"It was really fun watching that!" Astrid said, claiming the bed next to his. "Seeing all kinds of high-level magic...It’s amazing what people are capable of."

In the corner, the exorcist was practically kicking her feet in the air while counting each and every gold coin she acquired from a day of fruitful betting, "Ninety-two, ninety-three..."

Seated near the doorway, the orc looked caught in contemplation, and Noah knew exactly why when looking over.

"I don’t understand it," Redrum shook his head. "That was the very same man I recall from the stories. A brutal, sadistic hunter...For him to concede like that out of concern for his opponent."

"Was it out of the goodness of his heart, or was he scared of getting disqualified anyway? I mean, I imagine you get banned for life from the tournament for breaking the no-kill rule, champion or not," Otto theorized with a shrug, sitting on his bed, that was to the left of Noah’s.

"Whatever it was, I’m glad I won’t be matched up against that guy," Noah said with a sigh, looking up at the beige ceiling before closing his eyes.

By the next morning, they were huddled up in a cafe within the west district of Ballou. As expected, even as the sun had only just risen, the city was wide awake, with people from all corners of the world walking the streets.

He sat by the nearest window, sipping from a fresh cup of coffee, enjoying the sweet taste it had.

’I guess they’ve figured out coffee pretty well in this world, too,’ he thought.

"So? Nervous for today?" Otto asked from across the table with a giddy look.

"The second round...That’s when matches get truly intense," Rain added, holding the snow-white cup in both hands before sipping from it.

For their group of five, two tables were needed, especially with the seven-foot tall orc practically needing a whole row to himself.

Redrum sniffed the peculiar beverage, taking a sip and tasting it carefully, going from a scrunched expression to one of delight. "This drink...It is rather tasty."

"Yeah, humans need it to survive," Noah jokingly said before looking up, watching the lively city go on its way. "To answer your question, I’m not nervous, really."

"Well, you missed most of the first round matchups yesterday, so you don’t know what to expect, do you?" Astrid asked, using her spoon to guide a piece of fluffy cake into her mouth.

It seemed a bit early in the day for dessert, but Noah ignored that, folding his arms over his chest in thought, "Well, that’s true, so that’s probably not why I’m too nervous. I guess I just know that whoever comes my way, I’ll manage. And if I don’t, then I lose. Nothing lost there."

"You’re seriously something else, man," Otto remarked. "I’d be pretty depressed if I lost."

"Accepting defeat is an important aspect of living a proper life," Redrum parted his wisdom.

"Yeah, yeah, I get it," Otto sighed. "So, what’s your plan until the matches start? Going to get some training in? If you get matched against Sylvan, you’ll need to work on your defense."

It was a thought that crossed his mind, even having dreams of the bout he witnessed, not much fond of the idea of having to face the potent element wielded by the swordswoman.

He looked down at his half-empty mug of coffee, "Yeah, I was thinking about that. It doesn’t matter how much I believe in my ability to dodge or defend right now. A single hit of that Curse Lightning would be pretty bad."

"I can help you with that," Astrid suddenly offered, wiping a bit of cream from her lip away. "I mean, with magic defenses."

The offer was accepted, as right after their trip to the cafe, he ventured just outside the bounds of the city into the lush, open fields that neighbored hollow ruins. While the others remained in Ballou to do some shopping, he decided to take in the lessons the elf had for him.

There was a slight, spring breeze that passed through, brushing through the silken, golden hair of the mage as she pushed some strands behind her ear, "Are you ready?"

"Yeah, I’m completely ready to learn," Noah enthusiastically gave a thumbs-up.

Astrid had a soft smile, bringing her hands in front of her body, "There’s practically unlimited ways to choose to defend yourself with magic, but it’s important to know the most effective and efficient usages for every situation."

"What about using wind like Tederich did?" Noah did, motioning with his wrist to mimic the former champion.

Astrid shook her head slowly, "That’s not really standard of wind at all. What he was capable of came from decades of tireless training with wind, and nothing but wind, turning a simple breeze into a mighty blade."

"It was pretty amazing," Noah recalled, looking up.

The fluffy clouds casually drifted across the azure horizon, not allowing too much sunlight or too little, just enough.

"I’ll be honest, when it comes to defensive magic, I’m not great at it...It requires good reflexes in the heat of battle, which I’m not good at," Astrid admitted, turning her gaze. "But, I at least know the fundamentals."

"You’re too hard on yourself. I think you’re pretty amazing," Noah assured the youthful mage.

Just a simple remark like that left the elf’s cheeks flushed, even if Astrid tried to hide it by looking down, her pointy ears took the same hue as her cheeks.

"W-well, getting on to the subject...The best element for defense is Earth. If you end up matching against Sylvan at some point, it would be extra useful to know," Astrid explained. "I have no affinity for it, though."

"So, it’s a no-go to learn?"

"I didn’t say that," the golden-haired elf corrected with a slight smile. "I know how it works, so you just have to follow my instructions."

Completely allowing himself to learn from his companion, he carefully exhaled, focusing on the sensation of energy within his stomach, spreading it throughout his body. By now, it was a natural, almost automatic phenomena, akin to breathing.

"There’s two ways mages use earth magic," Astrid held up two fingers. "First, and easiest, is to imbue their mana into the natural element around them and manipulate it. Second, is creating it themselves, but that’s a lot more complicated, so we’ll just focus on the first. Give it a try."

"Alright, imbue it into the ground..." He repeated, breathing out.

From his boots, he extended his own mana into the soil, seeping into it. A strange sensation followed, like a sixth sense, extended through the dirt; he could feel it, cool to the touch.

"Get in tune with it, from how it feels, imagining even the ants that might be crawling through it. Visualize the softness of soil, the sturdiness of stone," Astrid guided in a soft tone. "When you have a grasp, try forming a pillar, even if its tiny–"

As soon as the instruction came, he felt a solid grasp on the soil around him, raising his hand as if motioning a command to the ground itself. A vibration hummed through the dirt before it ascended, giving rise to a pillar of earth that dwarfed them in height.

[EXP: +0.01] [50.000/75,000]

["Mage" Proficiency Up +1] [78/999]

Astrid tilted her head back, finding even the sparse sunlight blocked by the newly-formed pillar. In her mind, there were a few thoughts, and much to her own disgust, there was envy, somewhere deep in there.

More than any of that, she was happy for her friend, looking to Noah with a proud smile, "You did it. I...know I shouldn’t be surprised by this point by your natural talent, but it’s honestly unbelievable. It makes me wonder sometimes...why do I even try?"

"Astrid–"

"Ah–" The girl covered her mouth as if those words had come out by accident, then waved her hands to correct herself. "I didn’t mean it like that! Well, it’s just...Seeing you learn so quickly, it does make me feel like I’m doing something wrong."

It was something he saw from time-to-time with Astrid, and nothing he could blame her for feeling. By his best guest, it was no different than somebody dedicating their life to a certain instrument, only for a newbie to come along and go pro months after picking it up.

"Y’know, you shouldn’t compare things like that," Noah tried to assure, rubbing his head, thinking of the best way he could explain it. "I was born with a...gift, it lets me pick up on skills much faster than normal."

"A gift? I know you’re talented–"

"No, a literal gift, an innate ability, sort of thing, like Rain’s Divination," Noah explained, rubbing his chin before following up. "A better way to put it, well, you wouldn’t want to compare your grip strength against a gorilla, right?"

"A gorilla...? No," Astrid answered with a raised eyebrow, a bit taken aback by the comparison.

"Exactly, it has a natural advantage, so there’s no point in getting worked up about that kind of thing," Noah said, blinking a few times to make sure his odd point was understood.