Ian's Reverie, Fourth-grade Star!

98 to 99.

How big was the gap?

Ian decided to give it a try.

He closed his eyes and meditated.

Darkness filled his vision once more. Soon, tiny sparks emerged within it.

The speed at which he sensed his Mental Power had increased a little!

Ian focused his Mental Power and began to meditate.

Soon, an illusory rune slowly took shape.

Ten minutes later, the rune gradually became clearer, though it was still a little short of fully condensing.

He opened his eyes.

"There really are changes brought by the increase in talent. Whether it's the speed of sensing Mental Power, perception of the elements, absorption and conversion, or even the condensation of runes, all of it has improved considerably."

"But it's still a little lacking."

Ian was somewhat disappointed, but also exhilarated.

If it improved just a little more, perhaps he could condense it immediately.

"And my talent is at 99 now. One more point, and it'll be 100."

Ian's eyes flickered.

He could feel that his talent should rank among the very best of the fifth grade.

He probably wasn't far from the fourth grade.

Would reaching 100 talent mean entering the fourth grade?

"If I reach Fourth-grade Star Talent, then with the panel, I should be able to complete it on schedule within three months."

Ian had that confidence.

Of course, he would also need to raise an extraordinary skill to Master Level. The Meditation Method was obviously impossible.

That naturally left wizard cantrips.

Next, he needed to choose a cantrip and raise it to Master Level.

Water Condensation, then.

After completing his daily meditation, Ian began practicing Water Condensation.

But he soon noticed something was off.

"With this cantrip, I used to gain only seven or eight proficiency points in an hour. In ten hours, I could reach around seventy or eighty, but..."

Ian watched an hour pass.

Water Condensation's proficiency rose from forty to fifty.

That was two or three points faster than before.

It wasn't just his speed talent that had improved—his Spellcasting Talent had as well.

"The panel ensures that skill proficiency can increase. Raising it to Master Level improves talent, and once talent improves, skill proficiency rises even faster..."

Ian's eyes flickered.

This seemed to form a closed loop.

That also meant he practically had no limits!

Hiss!

That was a little terrifying!

Ian sucked in a sharp breath.

The gloom cast by his poor initial talent was swept away.

At that moment, he even wanted to venture out into Veridian Forest and have a look around.

Of course, he would have to wait until he advanced to wizard apprentice.

"After wizards defeated the ancient gods, they finally gained a firm foothold in our world. Then came the era of fighting for hegemony over the world—our era."

In the classroom, Victor taught about the history and current state of the wizard world.

"The struggle for resources is growing ever fiercer. Even in Veridian Forest, Horton Wizard School isn't the only school. There are also wandering wizards and black wizards roaming about. So even after becoming apprentices, don't think about leaving.

"Otherwise, you'll die horribly. It's dangerous out there."

Victor grinned, his gaze teasing.

The wizard apprentices in the classroom also felt a surge of tension.

Amid the crowd, Ian took a deep breath and buried the daydreams from not long ago deep in his heart.

The world was dangerous. Better to keep a low profile.

And with his limitless potential, there was even less reason to take such risks.

Better to lie low in the School, study Wizardry, improve his talent, and develop quietly.

"Let me ask—how many of you have condensed the first part of the rune?"

Victor suddenly swept his gaze around the room and asked.

Three people raised their hands—the apprentices with Third-star Witch Talent from before.

"Not bad. After this session, the three of you may each ask me three questions, and I will answer them."

Victor said.

This immediately drew envious looks from everyone.

They had all only just begun learning the meditation method, so naturally, it was impossible for them to have no questions at all.

Yet Victor had never answered them before.

"Those people can succeed in condensing it even without guidance. The ones who truly need help are Fourth-star talents like us. This isn't fair."

Logan beside Ian let out a mournful sigh.

He was the youth who had been beside Ian earlier.

Victor heard him and turned to look at him. "If you had said that to a bad-tempered witch, you would already be lying down—literally."

Logan's expression changed, and he lowered his head.

Victor turned back, smiling at the group. "Let me teach you one more thing."

"In the world of witches, there is fairness too—but only on the foundation of equal strength. Without strength, don't demand fairness. It will get you killed.

"Of course, you are all weak right now, but talent is also part of strength."

It was real, but cruel.

Everyone's feelings were complicated. Meanwhile, those three probationary apprentices unconsciously raised their heads a little higher.

As for Ian—

He lowered his head to look at his notes, open to the page on Water Condensation, now densely filled with writing.

Though it was only a cantrip, it was still important to him.

An apprentice named Rosen on the other side glanced over, then turned away again.

"What a waste of time!"

He silently classified Ian as one of those people whose brains did not work properly.

Wizardry cantrips were of no help at all in comprehending Mental Power Runes.

Soon, the lesson ended.

This time, the apprentices did not leave right away. Quite a few remained in the classroom.

Several apprentices crowded around the three, currying favor in hopes of receiving some guidance.

Ian did not linger and left directly.

Right now, he needed to hurry and improve his cantrip. That was the proper path.

He quickly returned to his stone house.

Water Condensation, Water Condensation...

In the blink of an eye, thirteen days passed.

Quite a few things happened.

Six days ago, two more apprentices sensed the first part of the rune, including Logan.

Taking this opportunity, Logan formed a Mutual Aid Society within the class and invited many people.

Of course, he mainly invited those with Fourth-star Witch Talent. Not a single person with Fifth-star Witch Talent was invited.

As for Ian, Logan was not sure whether he was Fourth-star or not.

But Ian always hurried off as soon as class ended, so Logan did not bother with him.

For Ian—

His progress had also been considerable.

First, the Basic Meditation Method broke through to Proficient.

The change it brought was roughly equivalent to going from needing two more meditation sessions to needing only one.

Water Condensation had also successfully broken through to Expert Level a few days ago.

Now, it was only one step away from Master Level.

"One last time."

Ian stood inside the stone house, feeling the damp air within, and could not help waving a hand.

Even the ground was almost soaked, making it somewhat slippery.

These were all proof of his hard work!

But it would not be this damp afterward.

"Water Condensation."

The practiced incantation left his lips as his Mental Power connected with the elements.

A small ball of water slowly appeared before him.

"Water Condensation has reached Master Level. Talent +1."

The panel appeared.

[Name: Ian Green]

[Age: 12]

[Strength: Mortal]

[Talent: 100 (Fourth-grade Star)]

[Skills: Basic Meditation Method (Proficient 40/200), Ignition Spell (Master Level), Water Condensation (Master Level), Light Spell (30/100)]