Vida raised her wand high. The tip glowed with a brilliant purple light. With a flick of her wrist, she quickly drew a perfect circle.
The rune flared briefly before vanishing. Immediately, a purple sphere appeared out of thin air.
The translucent, ping-pong-ball-sized sphere hovered half an inch from the wand’s tip. It hummed and vibrated as if containing massive energy. This was the Magic Missile.
However, it didn’t fire. It hovered at the tip of the wand like a bird perched on a branch.
Vida explained that Magic Missiles were controllable. There were various methods of control; besides basic hovering and releasing, one could also charge the spell or guide it. Guiding involved remotely manipulating the flight path.
However, guiding required a high level of skill. Freshmen shouldn’t even dream of it, and even upperclassmen struggled with it.
Then came practice time.
Vida casually fired the missile at a limestone block, kicking up a large cloud of dust. She waved her wand again, and the sandstone desks in front of the students rose to the height of a person, forming a protective sand wall.
Beginners had almost no control; the sand walls were there to prevent them from accidentally hitting their classmates.
The circular rune was easy to master. The casting process was essentially using the wand like a pencil to draw a circle, much like learning to sketch.
Wang Yue gripped her wand in a relaxed posture. With a slight flick of her wrist, the tip traced a circle.
The ring dissipated like a puff of smoke. No Magic Missile appeared. She had failed.
“Inject your magic power evenly,” Vida coached from nearby.
It seemed that not only did the circle need to be standard, but the injection of magic power had to be consistent. It couldn’t fluctuate.
She tried again, focusing on injecting magic power at a constant rate.
As the circle closed, a purple light flashed, and a Magic Missile condensed half an inch before her wand.
“Well done,” Vida praised. She stood on her tiptoes, patted Wang Yue’s head, and moved on to the next student.
Wang Yue focused on the Magic Missile, aiming it at the sand wall. With a thought, the missile shot forward!
Puff!
The missile exploded, leaving a shallow pit. The power wasn’t particularly impressive.
She conjured another missile. This time, she held it at the tip for a second or two, continuously injecting magic power.
Once it passed a certain threshold, the missile exploded right at the tip of her wand, the shockwave ruffling her hair.
Vida’s voice drifted over from a distance. “Do not inject too much magic power. At your current level, you cannot control a large manifestation of energy.”
Wang Yue found this increasingly interesting. She tried to find a balance—the limit of the magic power she could currently control. After several attempts, she determined her limit was roughly one second of charging.
She charged for one second and fired.
Thump!
The sand wall was struck with a much deeper pit. The power had increased significantly. If this hit a person, it would definitely break bones, she thought.
Having seen Naruto in her past life, Wang Yue naturally thought of the Rasengan.
She condensed another missile and tried to make it rotate.
This wasn’t easy. It was like trying to command a disobedient child.
Fortunately, rotation had momentum. By continuously nudging it, the speed accumulated. Like whipping a top, it went from slow to fast, spinning until it finally reached a high-velocity whirl that emitted a whistling sound.
She didn’t fire the missile. Instead, she thrust the wand tip directly into the sand wall, carving out a small hole.
Magic power followed the law of conservation of energy; causing damage consumed power. But as she continuously injected magic, she maintained a balance.
After poking a few holes, she felt it wasn’t very practical. Perhaps a sculptor would appreciate this technique.
Time to test the power. She took a step back and fired the high-speed rotating missile.
The Magic Missile shot out like a streak of light, its speed more than double what it had been before.
BOOM!
A loud explosion echoed, and dust filled the air, stinging her eyes.
Wang Yue rubbed her eyes vigorously. Once the dust settled, she saw that the point of impact for the spiraling missile had collapsed and shattered, tearing open a massive crater.
Compared to before, the destructive power had increased several times over. It was the difference between a smoothbore musket and a rifled gun.
Vida stared at the student in shock.
She had been among the faculty during yesterday morning’s Black Mass and had witnessed Wang Yue’s Witch Transformation. She hadn’t expected such staggering talent.
Wang Yue, however, didn’t care much for fighting. In her past life, she had been a student who hoped to become a teacher. After her unexpected transmigration, she had become a farmer. She had never planned on hitting people with sorcery.
“Let’s duel!” Lilith’s voice rang out nearby.
Wang Yue turned her head to see Lilith pointing her wand aggressively. A Magic Missile was spinning at the tip, ready to be fired.
Before Lilith could utter another word of provocation, the sand beneath her suddenly surged, forming four walls that boxed her in.
“I said: no pointing wands at classmates!”
Teacher Vida’s voice was suddenly booming, as if amplified by a megaphone. She was delighted to have finally caught someone to make an example of.
“Student Lilith, you will deliver an eight-hundred-word self-reflection to my office tomorrow.”
***
The Magic Missile was a simple spell. Once Vida confirmed every student had a basic grasp of it, she returned to the podium.
“Practice time is over. Put down your wands.”
The sand walls surrounding Lilith collapsed simultaneously. She bit her lip, glaring at Wang Yue in a huff.
Wang Yue spared her a glance, unbothered. She had to admit, Lilith’s eerie burgundy eyes were actually quite beautiful.
Vida spoke from the podium. “When you enrolled, you were told that witches have two developmental paths: Combat Witches or Learned Witches.”
“However, combat is the highest priority. Our situation is not safe. Danger comes not only from the mysterious, unknown dark world but also from enemies beyond the Eternal Night. Wars of faith could break out at any moment.”
“We will have monthly exams. In addition to written tests, there will be practical combat, including individual sorcery demonstrations and class competitions.”
“Regarding the class competitions, I should clarify: there are five classes in the first year. Each class will select their four best students to form a team and battle in a sandbox arena.”
“A transparent circular barrier will surround the field. It will gradually shrink, forcing you toward the center.”
“Contestants judged unable to continue are considered defeated and will be removed from the field. The last team standing is the champion.”
Wang Yue blinked. This sounded familiar. Wasn’t this just a Battle Royale?
