Now here and now, Patrick and Alice were beginning to play a game.

'You're starting to do a bit of that, aren't you?

Alice unleashed her signature water magic.
Patrick, on the other hand, built a wall of fire to prevent all of Alice's magic.
And the expression on his face showed an unthinkable leeway from the previous Patrick.

''That's the power of a spirit, isn't it?

I can help...

'Hmmm........that's what I meant, you know?　Don't tell me you regret your reliance on the spirits?　That's a big decision, isn't it?

Patrick didn't lose his temper and gave Alice a sharp look.

'There's no point in provoking me. I don't regret it, and I don't consider it a disgrace. After this power was inhabited, it was extremely difficult for me to learn to use it. And even now it's almost useless. That's why I'm confident that I've worked hard to get it. Alice?　I can't break this 'conviction' in you.

Then Alice was poised.

I'll turn that "certainty" into doubt. I'll change your 'certainty' to doubt, and give you another certainty. I'll give you a different kind of certainty. I'll give you the certainty that you've cheated.

The moment Alice finished saying that, the shield of fire that was in front of Patrick's front door loomed towards Alice.
The fire swelled up and crawled across the ground as if it were dancing, approaching Alice in a straight line.

''You certainly look more decent than the other day. But it's too late, isn't it?

Then Alice didn't use her magic and ran on the ground.
Flames chased the fleeing Alice.
But Alice just ran.
And in her expression, I could see the margin of a smile.

''【Distorted Water Stream (Aqua Enough)!

Then with a chant, a whip of water appeared in Alice's hand.

'I understand your fire!　If it doesn't work once, then prevent it from happening again and again. That's all there is to it!

Then Alice stopped and turned around.
Then she smacked the water whip repeatedly at the fire that was closing in on herself.
Then water vapor danced in front of her and her vision instantly deteriorated.
Each time, Alice changed places, extinguished the fire with the whip again, and then carefully blocked Patrick's magic.

'What do you think, Patrick?!　Your magic is easily prevented by my skilled magic!

Then Sarah appeared right above Patrick.
And next to her was Yui.

Alice wondered at the genie who suddenly appeared, and a question mark appeared on her face.

--What is she going to do?

Alice thought, and became more alert.

'Patrick?　What's taking you so long?　Carelessness will get you killed.

Sara said.

'I know. I'm not caught off guard. And I won't be using Sarah's power. We will only use Yui's magic.

I understand. Then Yui?　I asked for it, okay?

'Yes, sir!　I'll do my best for the princess!

Then Sarah smiled and disappeared.

'So, Yuy, let's go, shall we?　As practiced, at a ratio of 6:4, I'll merge me and Yui's magic power.

'I know!　Yu is four, right?

Yes.

Then the two men's eyes changed.

''Rejection of the Fire Spirit [Regulated Salamander]!

At that moment, a burning magic circle appeared at Patrick's feet.
Then Patrick's red flames and Yui's orange flames blew out of Patrick's body and merged in the sky above.

Alice forgot her smile and thrust out her hand as if in a hurry and chanted.

''【Water Flowing Mallet (Divorce Room)!

Alice uses advanced magic to match the scale of Patrick's magic.

The advanced magic used by Alice is the so-called 'Iron Hammer Series', which is the basic magic in advanced magic.
If it's a fire attribute, the 'Mollet of Fire' is the most famous.

''I'm surprised!　You were already able to use magic that dense, right?

I'm still saving my ass.

But currently, this was the best Patrick could do.

Yuy's flame has a magic power that is suitable for fusion.
It supports the host and promotes the stability of magic power.
That's why Sarah chose Yui as Patrick's spirit.
With Yui's magic power as the axis, the magic power of the two of them is combined, fusing a total of three magic powers.
And she wants Patrick to learn the Blue Flame.
However, they haven't been able to get to that point yet.

Yu, let's go!

No problem!

The moment the two confirmed their intentions, the flames burning in red and orange intensified and erupted.
Then they turned to face Alice and pressed on.

Alice manipulated a huge ball of water that appeared above her head, aimed at the approaching flames and let loose.

To begin with, the water is higher!　Fire is to be put out by water!

''This fire cannot be put out by the inertial water magic!

Ta-da!

--Rude to call me weak!
Alice's face twitched as she said it.

In the middle of the field, clashing fire and water.
There are no tricks in this battle.
It's just a pure contest of strength.
And this would decide the winner.

Alice sends her magic power to the water ball while holding on.
But in contrast, Patrick was not in such a tense state.
Rather, how do I move the fire to overcome Alice's magic without using any more magic power?　I was even thinking about that.

'It's still the same as before, isn't it!

This is bullshit.
Alice knows.
She knows that she can't beat Patrick with this.

Alice was also training her magic every day to prepare for the championship match.
With the help of her valet and best friend, the cat tribe Elle, she was steadily gaining strength.
But Patrick, who inhabited the spirit, was even more than Alice expected.
From the last battle to today (today), he had been thinking and training about the stability of magic and the efficient distribution of magic power.
But that didn't work for Patrick.

Then Patrick's two-colored flames enveloped Alice's giant water ball.
And gradually, the water ball contracted while emitting water vapor.

''Alice I'm sorry, but I win.

Alice looked pessimistically at her own fading magic.

''Huh ... it seems so. But........it can't be helped.

Gradually, for a moment as Alice's magic faded, they talked to each other.

Patrick was a prince, but he was a prince, but he was a bit of a klutz.
And as if to hide his weaknesses, he was falsely accused of being falsely accused and bullied by the senior students.
He was frequently beaten and kicked, but Patrick never gave up his princely dust and sought strength.
There was no one to talk to Patrick like that.

--except for Alice Cresta.

Once upon a time, when the Cresta family had been driven out of the Rashausen family, they had lost their royal title and started over as a nobleman.
As a result of their ancestors' steady efforts, the king of a certain country gave them a title and made them dukes, and it's no exaggeration to say that Cresta is now so powerful that they have more power than the country's royal family, the Radshausen family.
And Alice couldn't forgive Rasthausen for having driven Cresta and her friends out of the country in the past and then falling into a small country.
And most of all, she couldn't forgive Patrick, who had fallen into a small country after driving Cresta and her friends away in the past.
But at the same time, it could be said that he wished for Patrick to be stronger than anyone else.
He was born with a foul mouth.
But above all, Alice was the only person who spoke to Patrick.
--until Nito showed up at this academy.

'Alice thank you. I'll thank Alice for that.

Hmm?　What is it, all of a sudden?　It's weird, isn't it?

Alice had a thin smile on her face as she said this.

'You've inspired me. You made me stay with my regrets. So ... thank you.

''Huh ... you say strange things, don't you?　I just couldn't bear to see you, prince and unworthy!

At that moment, Alice's magic disappeared.
Then Patrick's fire approached Alice and stared at her like a willing snake.

'Alice come on, surrender...'

Then the two looked at each other for a moment.
And then--

Well that's no good. But there's still a school tournament next year. There's still a chance for me to ... well ... this time I'm going to lose.

Then Alice raised her hand.

'--I, Alice Cresta, admit defeat!

At that moment, Patrick's flames turned into particles, hovered in the air, and then dissipated.

And a cheer arose from the audience.
Everyone was excited to see a high level mage fight.

-- "Winner!　Patrick Lasthausen!

The two left the venue to loud cheers.
Patrick would then move on to the semifinals.

-- against Nem.

And one of us can go to the finals.

But I'm going to win.

Even though the game had just ended, there was fire in Patrick's eyes.




o




　　As Patrick left the hall, the headmaster appeared in front of him.

--Sabrina Kidman.

This is a private passageway that leads from the hall to the waiting room.
It looks like a small tunnel.
And it was dimly lit, cool and chilly, and the voice sounded good.

It's brilliant, Patrick. But ... you know what I mean, don't you?　Why am I here?

Patrick's expression slowly clouded over from a blank expression.
But Patrick couldn't even consider it.

'Spirit magic is the power that Adams created to erase the abyss of this world. That power is both great and mighty, you know?　Depending on how you use it, it could be a threat to the world.

At this point, Patrick realized Sabrina's purpose.

'Well ... I ...

Then a small fire flared up next to Patrick and Sarah appeared there.
Sabrina then stared at the Spirit King who had appeared.

''Well she's the Spirit King, isn't she?''

Patrick was surprised by the words and panicked inside.

--How could the principal know about Sarah?

A trickle of sweat ran down Patrick's forehead.

Then Sabrina didn't change her expression, sighed, and continued.

'As soon as you enter a room without permission, you're essentially expelled!　And the fact that you brought up the forbidden book is reason enough to fall into that category!　And even the Spirit King........

Then Sabrina let out another loud sigh, as if she was fed up, while speaking for herself.

'But I will not question this one!　No one is allowed to talk about it!　"I wouldn't want him to leave the academy right now, either... but is it okay?　Please don't let this happen again!

As Patrick listened, he was ready to drop out of school.
However, he is surprised to find out that the question was not asked, and he is at a loss to understand the situation.
And who is "he"?
But if I had any idea, Nito was the only one I could think of.

'Well ... what did Nito say to you?'

What do you think?　You can ask him if you want to know. But I didn't think that you, a prince, would be so foolish. Didn't you think that you would be a disgrace to your father's face?

I was just...

If you're a prince, you should be more aware of that. You are a prince. You are the King of Rashausen, the next in line to the throne after Arnold?

Patrick couldn't say anything back.
Then Sarah, who couldn't see it, interrupted him.

'I don't know who you are, but can you stop taunting Patrick any further?

Then, Sabrina makes a look that says, "I didn't expect the genie to speak out - I didn't expect him to speak out.

''This, this is a student-teacher issue.

Do you think so?　It looks to me like you're getting personal, though?　Besides, as soon as Patrick made the spirit contract with me, it was all set in stone all along, right?　I mean, this is the will of Adams. It's not something you can control.

Then Sabrina's nose twitched, as if her pride had been snapped, and she hid her anger.
Then, with her mouth closed, she stared straight into Sarah's eyes.

''Hmph.......I've been licked too, haven't I?　I'm the principal and I'm giving you what you deserve, okay?　And that's what the spirits are doing, making fun of it....

That was when Sabrina uttered that.
Blue fire dwelt in Sarah's eyes, and then an equally blue fire erupted from her body.
Then it surrounded Sabrina as if to catch and not let her go.

'A genie? ...sweetheart?　Am I mistaken?

Then Sabrina's face twitched and--

'A mistake?　Huh...............................Do you know what happens when a spirit harms a person?!

'After all, you don't seem to understand anything, do you?　As a race of humans, Adams forbade us spirits to do harm to others. But that's just a teaching.　And the spirits who have established a master-servant relationship with it don't follow that code. Just follow the contractor's will and kill them!

Then Sabrina realized her misconception there.
There is a popular perception that spirits are things that will not harm people, no matter what they do.
But in reality, this was not the case.

It's not just a matter of time before you'll be able to get a good deal more out of it.

'Sarah, no more--'

But then Patrick interrupted Sarah.
Then, in accordance with that, Sarah's blue flames contracted in a flash and returned to Sarah.

"Sir I'm sorry, I'm sorry. It's just that I needed the power.

There was remorse, and then sadness in Patrick's words.

'Despite being a prince, I ... couldn't even use locks of magic. I couldn't use even basic magic well, and advanced magic was unstable. It's been more than two years since I came here and I haven't grown up like I've grown up......I can't face my father like this.......I thought so.

Hearing Patrick's words as he speaks, Sabrina's expression becomes calmer than before.

Sabrina is not a bad teacher by any means.
But as the person in charge of the academy, she can't just say things that sound good to her ears.

'Sir, I promise you this. I'm not like Nito.

I'm not sure...

'And Nito ... one day he'll realize that. That wasn't really him. That guy helped me through my torment, and really, from the bottom of my heart, he was angry with me. He helped me turn it all around. So it's different that he's just a companion and then he's just a little too compassionate. So eventually....

Patrick then bites his lip there and closes his mouth.

'I'm sorry ... excuse me.'

Then, without saying more, he bowed lightly to Sabrina and walked away quietly from the scene

Sabrina paused for a moment, as if she was thinking about something.
But then she gave a complicated, grim expression and quietly disappeared into the back of the passage.

And the passage was filled with the sound of Sabrina's shoes, a knocking knocking knocking sound.
The sound faded away the next time I noticed that there was no one there.
The sound of the wind blowing towards the hall only echoes in the aisle, creating a cacophony of sound.
Loneliness ... and sadness ...

It was as if it represented something else that lay ahead.