At My Level, a Nascent Naturally Has the Right

Boom!

Lightning struck the grass glowing with a crystalline blue light. The intense heat sparked a blaze, burning a wide swath of shrubs to nothing.

Whoosh!

At the very moment the thunder roared, three ice shards shot out from another angle, aimed at Vivian's back.

The sound of the ice shards cutting through the air was mixed with the thunder, making it difficult to distinguish.

"As cunning as expected."

But Vivian had seen through the other party's little trick.

There were many strange forms of witchcraft in the world. An attack coming from the front one moment and appearing behind you the next was perfectly normal.

Vivian leaped up and turned around. While still in midair, she flung out a second bolt of lightning.

Her affinity was for the lightning element, so naturally, she used lightning-element witchcraft.

One characteristic of lightning-element witchcraft was its speed—fast casting, with barely any wind-up!

The raging lightning shattered the ice shards. Its force weakened by only thirty percent, and the remaining power continued forward, targeting Ahab, who had launched the sneak attack from behind Vivian.

The second characteristic of lightning-element witchcraft was its high burst power. It was clearly stronger than other witchcraft of the same tier, giving it a major advantage in clashes.

Purple lightning reflected in Ahab's pupils. He made no move to defend himself, merely stepping gracefully a few paces to the left.

Boom!

The lightning struck the ground, leaving a large scorched patch on the gravel path.

But Ahab, a few steps away, remained safe and sound, utterly unscathed.

The third characteristic of lightning-element witchcraft was that while it was fast and powerful, its attacks traveled only in a straight line, making them difficult to land.

In a single exchange, both sides had used witchcraft twice, each move containing countless layers of calculation.

At that moment, Ahab and Vivian stood facing each other, their expressions taut with tension, like cowboys about to duel.

"I didn't expect you to figure out it was fake so quickly."

"But if I hadn't resisted just now and had let your ice shards hit me, what would you have done?"

Having realized how troublesome her opponent was, Vivian hoped to make him back down.

"Let me tell you, I have a General Affairs Hall warning badge planted on me. The moment I'm injured, it'll trigger an alarm."

"Then you'll be fined!"

What was the most terrifying punishment in the academy?

Nothing else—the confiscation of Magic Stones.

If one's finances worsened, there was a risk of being executed.

"I'm a team leader. My monthly allowance is ten."

The implication was clear: I have money. I can do whatever I want.

Ahab's casual remark nearly shattered Vivian's composure.

Why? Their spiritual power was both in the single digits, and they both had second-rate meditation talent, so why had he managed to become a team leader?

If she didn't receive only three Magic Stones a month, who would be willing to take such a risk to scam someone?

Boom!

Vivian raised her right arm high, and lightning spread from her palm into the sky.

When she had voluntarily revealed the matter of her badge earlier, it had been partly to make Ahab retreat and partly to test him.

To test whether Ahab could attack without any reservations at all.

Now, the result of that test was clear.

That meant if she wanted to leave today, defeating Ahab Gul was her only option.

Lightning struck down. Ahab Gul pushed both hands forward, once again firing three ice shards to defend himself.

The ice spikes were shattered by the lightning, but the lightning's force weakened considerably, and its aim became even less accurate.

Ahab dodged to the right, and the lightning missed again.

"The one in the grass was the first time. The sneak attack from behind just now was the second. This makes the third."

Vivian smiled smugly.

"Ahab Gul, you have sixty mana. You can only use witchcraft three times, and you've used all three already."

"What are you going to do now?"

The lightning in Vivian's hand was poised to strike.

Yet under Vivian's shocked gaze, Ahab fired ice shards once more.

The lightning was weakened, and Ahab Gul dodged aside.

"Impossible! How could that be? You shouldn't have a fourth time..."

Vivian gritted her teeth in astonishment, then suddenly thought of a possibility.

Why had Ahab been able to appear behind her so quickly after blue light had shone from the grass?

That blue light in the grass had not been witchcraft at all—

Ahab had ignited Magic Stones!

Magic Stones were crystallized high-density mana. Once ignited, they gave off light matching the igniter's elemental affinity.

Judging by the intensity of the light in the grass just now—

Ahab had ignited at least three Magic Stones at once!

He had kept only the last one for his essential daily expenses.

"Not only are you cunning, you're ruthless. You're even ruthless toward yourself."

Though the wasted Magic Stones were not Vivian's, she still wore a pained expression.

The mandatory expense of one Magic Stone per month could only guarantee an apprentice's most basic survival.

But if living expenses were raised to two Magic Stones, life would become much more comfortable.

Roast chicken, tender steak, ginger-grilled meat... all kinds of delicious food until you were full!

That guy Ahab Gul had actually thrown away three Magic Stones.

He really was... ruthless!

"Don't get cocky too soon. I've trained thoroughly too."

Vivian spread her legs one before the other and raised her clenched fists before her chest.

Since both of them had emptied their mana, it was time for hand-to-hand combat.

The next part of the story would be righteous Vivian battling the cunning and vicious Ahab Gul!

"Oh, my friend, you've overlooked something very important."

Ahab laughed at Vivian's stance. He patted his own chest, then pointed at Vivian's full figure.

Vivian's heart skipped a beat.

That was right. So what if she had trained?

She was a soft, sweet little princess, while he was a grown man!

Crack, smack, crunch...

The battle ended in merely ten breaths.

Righteous Vivian was defeated.

Ahab took out the rope he had prepared beforehand and tied Vivian up tightly. Then he connected the rope around her ankles to the rope behind her back, binding her in a spread-eagle position to keep her from kicking around.

Then Ahab searched Vivian from head to toe.

Just as he had expected, Vivian had already hidden Three-Headed Hound's Fang somewhere else and was not carrying it on her.

It seemed he would need to use his backup hidden plan.

That was—make Vivian honestly confess where she had hidden it.

"Ahab Gul, Ahab Gul! Where are you taking me?"

Looking at Vivian, who had no filter on her mouth, Ahab spoke earnestly again.

"Do you know what my favorite item is? Tape. Why?"

"Because it can turn 'blah blah blah' into 'mmph mmph'!"

Ahab carried Vivian for a full hourglass.

They went from a relatively central area of the academy's West District to a place rarely visited by anyone.

Before long, Ahab saw several old stone houses.

The windows had been sealed shut, and the doors were covered in official seals. Clearly, no one had come here for a long time, and the buildings were very soundproof.

These houses had originally been purchased by an apprentice. Later, that apprentice had been executed after going bankrupt, and the academy had reclaimed the properties.

Ahab found the one he had picked out during the day and silently pushed open the door.

He tossed Vivian inside, entered after her, then shut the door and carefully used a fishhook and fishing line to restore the seal.

"Ahab Gul, you actually want to imprison me?"

"How dare you imprison a girl? You have no right to do this!"

Vivian's mouth was gagged, leaving her voice low and muffled, but it was still possible to roughly make out what she was saying.

After hearing Vivian's words, Ahab Gul nodded in agreement.

"You're right."

"A wizard at my level doesn't have the right to imprison you."

"But—"

"A Nascent at my level has the right to do anything to anyone!"