Mage Manual-Chapter 649 - 515: Sword Maiden’s Stage (Part 1)

"Sigh."

In the individual training room, Sonia put down the wooden sword, breathing out a scorching breath. As soon as she stopped, beads of sweat glided from her temples, skimming over her flushed cheeks, like pearls pattering against her collarbone and flowing into the gorges of her training vest.

She walked over to grab a water bottle and began to drink in quick, shallow gulps. As her frantic heartbeat slowly settled, and her nearly depleted magic power gradually recovered, the Village Girl simply took off her training vest—after all, it was a private training room, and convenience was key.

The sweat-soaked vest was so damp that with a little effort, water could be wrung out of it. She shoved it into her gym bag, then took out a dry towel to pat dry the sweat behind her ears, along her neck, on her forehead, and beneath her chest.

After changing into clean clothes, Sonia let down her hair, which she had tied up, and left the training room with her training bag and wooden sword in tow. In the afternoon, the three bright stars were widely spaced, making the sunshine pleasant but not dazzling. As soon as Sonia stepped out of the Magic Training Room, she saw a familiar silver luxury car and the person waiting beside it.

"Are you looking for me?"

"Get in the car, we’ll talk," Felix opened the door, "And I’ll give you a ride home."

Sonia didn’t refuse, but she didn’t sit in the passenger seat either. Instead, she got into the backseat, making Felix look like a driver. Felix didn’t mind, and as he drove, he asked, "Are you nervous?"

"Hm?"

"It’s your first time coming to the Magic Training Room," Felix said. "You never used to come here to hone your skills; I remember you saying, ’Magic Miracles should be tempered through real battles in the Void Realm, it’s unnecessary to waste extra time hitting a dummy that can’t fight back.’"

Sonia thought for a moment, "Did I say that before? Then I must have spoken wrongly."

"Ah?"

"I’m young. Isn’t it normal for me to misspeak sometimes?" Sonia pushed her hair back behind her ears, smiling as she looked out the car window, "I’m just an ordinary person who makes mistakes."

Felix paused for a moment, "In that aspect, you’re very much like him."

"Who?"

"Your opponent tonight." Felix didn’t even want to mention the name, his expression growing dark: "He’s been like that since childhood—confident, carefree, humble, sunny. Clearly as dazzling as a bright star, yet never avoiding his own faults and mistakes, glad to correct them when pointed out..."

Sonia blinked, "Then you must have had a hard time."

"Why would you think that?" ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom

"The brighter the protagonist on the stage, the dimmer the audience in the shadows."

Felix was taken aback. Her nose even felt a bit sour. She quickly sorted through her emotions and laughed, "But you didn’t use to have this kind of confident and generous character."

"In your eyes, what was my image?"

"An arrogant and insecure Village Girl who never backs down and refuses to show weakness, like a hedgehog bristling with spines." Felix was surprisingly blunt, "The only merit was your clear goal, without any hesitation."

Sonia thought about it and nodded, "That is indeed the case. When I think back on my past self, I too find her somewhat annoying. However, there’s one thing you got wrong: I wasn’t someone with a clear goal before. On the contrary, I was very greedy, wanting this and that, participating in meaningless campus activities, accumulating useless social connections, thinking I was diligent and clever, but it was merely a waste of time to impress myself."

"My roommate was much smarter. Adelle knew she was just there to enjoy college life, never jealous of what she couldn’t have; Lois would boast every day about the latest fashion from her home, turning her social network into effective business for her family; Ingrid... Ingrid’s future achievements will definitely be the highest among us in the dormitory."

"On the contrary, I, having suffered too much hardship previously, developed over-ambitious dreams unwarranted for myself. If I had continued down that path, my outcome would definitely not have been good. If it weren’t for..."

Felix was somewhat fascinated and inquired, "If it weren’t for what?"

Sonia didn’t answer, saying instead, "Now, I truly have a clear goal. I already know what I want to do, and everything else can make way for this goal."

"This goal of yours, does it include Meteor Disaster?" Felix smiled, "Do you think coming to the Magic Training Room at the last minute to practice can increase your chances of winning?"

"Although I took advantage of sparring opportunities to beat you up a few times in the past, you are not the type to hold grudges, nor would you come specially to insult me with words—unless you want to spar with me again." Sonia held the sword bag and said, "You might as well speak more clearly."

Felix glanced at her, and then a cute Two-winged green Technique Spirit emerged from his shoulder. It pointed at the Village Girl, and she suddenly felt much lighter; even her sight, hearing, and other senses were incredibly sharpened!

However, Sonia was more interested in the Technique Spirit, "A Two-winged ’Lightfeather’ Technique Spirit? Felix, you’ve become a Two-winged Mage?"

Felix nodded. "Although this pace is nothing compared to yours, it’s true, I have become a Two-winged Mage."

"How did it happen so fast!" Sonia blurted out. "Did you find a golden fish?"

"How could that be possible? The legends of the Void Realm are not so easily encountered," Felix laughed. "I just took some shortcuts and advanced the Wind Skill faction to the Gold Level, that’s all."

The Village Girl inwardly marveled—knowing her ability well, she was clear about how much weight her title of Two-winged Mage carried. If it weren’t for the Observer smuggling her past the golden fish, she would need at least three months to barely reach the threshold of the Gold Level.

Her current Gold Level swordsmanship realm was also built on the tremendous advantages of gaining the Two-winged Technique Spirit in advance, treating the Sword Technique Treasure Bead as a snack, and triggering the mysterious encounters in the Void Realm. If the advancement of others in their faction realm was like a careful romance with hand-holding, dating, kissing, and then establishing a relationship, then the Observer and she were akin to moving in together first, then working backwards from there.

By contrast, Felix seemed rather terrifying—he actually pushed a Magic Faction to the Gold Level in just over two months! Romances don’t even progress this fast!

"Wait," Sonia suddenly noticed something. "Did you say you took shortcuts?"

"Yes," said Felix. "That’s what I wanted to talk to you about. I recently joined a mutual aid group for Mages, where the members are idealists in pursuit of power. However, since the knowledge shared is forbidden and unacknowledged, the group must operate covertly, its existence known to almost no one but its members."

"Mutual aid, power pursuit, forbidden knowledge, secretive organization," Sonia remarked, skeptical. "It has all the suspicious elements; I’m almost convinced you’re making it up."

"We’ve arrived." Felix stopped the car outside the dormitory area. After all, within the campus, even driving at a snail’s pace only took a few minutes.

"So you’re here to recruit me into that secret organization?"

"Exactly." Felix rolled down the window, lit a cigarette and held it between his fingers, watching the direction of the smoke. "For one, you’re undoubtedly a talent with immense potential, and I want to forge a good relationship with you. Nothing fosters mutual trust better than being in the same secret organization; secondly, I think you’re also someone who takes shortcuts."

"Shortcuts are not easier or simpler routes. On the contrary, the reason they are forbidden knowledge is that they are more dangerous than the usual paths. That’s why they can’t be widely known, existing only as legacies in the Void Realm. This is also why our organization is secretive and niche. We can’t just expand our membership—even regular Mages would be courting death by taking shortcuts."

"I can be frank with you; to become a Two-winged Mage, I, too, have taken great risks," Felix flicked off the ash and continued. "But the rewards have been immense—only by this shortcut have I managed to barely catch up with the pace of a genius like you."

Sonia asked inquisitively, puzzled, "You’re still young, why such a hurry?"

"Because Fate doesn’t respect youth or the elderly, I must come fully armed." Felix looked at her through the rearview mirror. "Although I had a poor impression of you initially, I don’t actually dislike you, because I think we are similar."

The Village Girl couldn’t help but laugh. "Apart from both having two eyes, a nose, and a mouth, I really don’t see any similarities, my dear Vosloda, the scion born with a golden key."

"We both don’t want to lose," Felix stated solemnly. "Some people always keep winning; why can’t it be us?"

"Still, you must have your doubts right now. But you can ask Reonie or Professor Trozan when you return. In fact, it’s not uncommon for Mages to join secret organizations—they have their own circles too. You, Sonia, have advanced too quickly and have also been preoccupied with the Meteor Disaster competition, so you just haven’t been pulled in yet. After tonight, many Mage clubs will extend their olive branches to you; I’m just taking the opportunity to give you a heads-up."

Sonia nodded and stepped out of the car. At that moment, Felix suddenly called out to her again. "I almost forgot to tell you... just as our organization has shortcuts that allowed me to advance the Wind Skill faction realms rapidly, we also have shortcuts that can transform your Sword Technique Faction just as quickly."

"So," Felix stared into her eyes, emphasizing every word, "do you want to become a Holy Sanctuary Mage?"

Sonia’s expression turned strange, caught between wanting to speak and holding back.

In the end, she pursed her lips and said, "I’ll consider it."

*

Watching Sonia’s retreating figure, Felix rolled up the window. He dragged deeply on the half-burnt cigarette, and it instantly burned down to the filter. The ashes whisked into the car’s ashtray by a light breeze, and then he exhaled a puff of white fog that filled the car’s interior.

The Magic Miracle · Mermaid Fog Scene, a supportive miracle, provided an enhancement of thought, inspiration, dulling of pain, and heightened senses to Mages within the fog. Ever since mastering this miracle, Felix had accustomed himself to thinking and planning amid the white mist.

"The seed has been planted; all that’s needed is to wait for tonight’s rooting and sprouting," Felix mused as he looked at the extinguished cigarette butt. "When she suffers a brutal defeat at the hands of that person, she’ll undoubtedly harbor resentment. Resentment breeds ambition, and ambition leads to madness... I know this all too well."

"Lose, and may the defeat tonight be as bitter as possible."

"Only by experiencing painful failure will she realize how weak she truly remains."

"Only by seeing the chasm-like gap will she understand the immense distance between her and the Holy Domain."

"Tonight will become the turning point of her life."

The source of this c𝓸ntent is fr(e)𝒆novelkiss