Eastern Forest.
Ur sat on the ground. A short distance in front of him, Levy was doing her best to practice her magic.
In the end, Pasfield's "sincerity" had won him over. The Dory family had been in the wine business for over a century—an old-money powerhouse. Even a mere five percent share was worth several hundred million at the very least.
More importantly, this wasn't like the assets Ur had obtained before. It was a sustainable income.
Of course, all of that depended on successfully acquiring the "Azure Water."
Ur could tell Pasfield hadn't revealed the whole truth. But what did that matter? Everyone had their secrets.
As long as Pasfield didn't try to skip out on payment, that was enough. Though deep down, Ur almost hoped he would. If Pasfield defaulted, Ur could physically collect the debt. Sure, it would turn into a one-time gain, but the amount would definitely be larger.
They agreed to set out in a month.
Before that, Ur had Pasfield post the commission at the guild and specifically name Ur as the one accepting it. That way, he could conveniently complete an A-Class quest in the process.
Now that this year's S-Class Trial had ended, it was only natural for Ur to start preparing for his own S-Class Mage promotion.
And during this month, he had a few matters to settle.
First, his magic.
Ur poured most of the twenty million-plus he had unexpectedly obtained from Master Dingley straight into upgrading Explosive Flame, raising its enhancement level by another tier.
[Explosive Flame +5 (Special Effects: High Temperature +5, Burning +5, Destruction +3, Magic Amplification +2, Magic Break +2).]
The dragon's body was no joke. Even a drake possessed astonishing magic resistance. While their physical defenses might be somewhat weaker by comparison, their sheer size alone made it incredibly difficult to injure them through brute force.
Like Hitsuya last time, Ur estimated his magic resistance had been close to twenty percent, which meant that even an opponent with equal magic power would see their spells weakened by nearly one-fifth against him.
If Explosive Flame hadn't happened to gain the Magic Break effect, the outcome of that battle might have been very different. Since his next opponent was likely another dragon, other upgrades could wait, but Magic Break had to be strengthened again.
The second matter was the one currently unfolding.
Smack!
Ur flicked his bamboo rod against Levy's backside. Her petite frame trembled, and she let out a soft cry.
"Mm~!" Clutching her rear, Levy spun around, cheeks puffed out, face flushed red, eyes shimmering with unshed tears as she glared at him indignantly.
"Don't lose focus while practicing magic," Ur said flatly, unimpressed by her pitiful expression. "Even if you're not a combat-type mage, you need some ability to defend yourself. Or do you plan to roll down a mountainside again the next time someone startles you?"
When Ur had learned the "truth" behind Levy's so-called fainting incident, only heaven knew how he'd felt.
"Hmph! (╯^╰) " Levy pouted, huffing in protest. She turned her head away in exaggerated offense.
Ur silently raised the bamboo rod again.
Levy, who had been sneaking glances at him from the corner of her eye, immediately jumped back and covered her backside with both hands.
They locked eyes for several long seconds.
In the end, realizing she couldn't soften this demon king's heart of stone, Levy's eyes reddened. Looking utterly wronged, she resumed practicing magic.
Though she couldn't resist muttering under her breath as she worked. "Stupid Ur… jerk Ur…"
Ur kept his trademark poker face. But his head was already starting to ache.
After a year here, he'd come to realize that most members of Fairy Tail weren't nearly as enthusiastic about training as he'd imagined. Take Natsu, for example, exceptional magical talent, sure, but he preferred sleeping and fooling around to actual practice.
Even when he did train seriously, it was usually after losing a one-on-one match to Gildarts or Erza. He'd push himself for a while… and then promptly revert to his old habits.
Under normal circumstances, that wouldn't matter. After all, aside from Ur, no one knew how many disasters awaited Fairy Tail in the future.
But once he started teaching Levy some combat fundamentals, he discovered just how… difficult it could be.
Smack!
"Focus. It took you over three seconds to construct that magic circle. In a real fight, no enemy is going to give you that much time." He tapped her lightly again with the bamboo rod, speaking in an even tone.
Levy yelped, clutching her backside once more. She looked at him as though she were on the verge of bursting into tears.
Ur's headache intensified. He'd lost count of how many times this had happened in the past three days.
He was only using the bamboo rod as a reminder; he barely put any force into it. Yet this girl acted as though she'd suffered some great injustice. That expression of hers, she could've won an award for Best Dramatic Performance.
Seriously?
The Levy from the original story didn't have this much of a flair for theatrics!
"…Forget it. That's enough for today." In the end, Ur conceded.
He could only console himself: she's still a kid. Don't be too harsh. Though, in truth, he knew that was self-deception. People in this world matured early. Fifteen was considered adulthood. Levy was already fourteen, technically not an adult yet, but close enough.
"Yay!"
The moment Ur announced they were done, Levy sprang up like a husky just let off its leash, bouncing over with zero trace of her earlier grievance.
Ur's forehead twitched.
It had only been a year. Wasn't this personality shift a little extreme?
"Let's head back to the guild," Ur said calmly, beckoning Panda, who had grown several sizes larger, to follow.
"Carry me!" Levy dashed over and wrapped her arms around him, speaking in a sweet, coaxing tone.
Ur: "…Fine. Get on." He bent down and hoisted the 'little tyrant' onto his back, walking slowly toward the edge of the forest.
After a moment, he added, "In a month, I'll be heading out on a mission. It might take a while. Practice your combat skills while I'm gone. When I get back, I'll test you…"
"Oh."
Under the glow of the setting sun, their two shadows stretched longer and longer across the forest path.
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Next Chapter: The Northern Sea
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