Some time had passed since Kano had calmed down, and now they were standing in the Guild's coliseum. The vast chamber was designed for training and assessing newcomers' abilities. Elghot gestured for Kano to step into the center of the arena.
"We'll start with your physical condition," said the mage, flipping open a thick journal filled with tests and charts. "Let's check your strength and stamina."
Kano sighed but obeyed. He began going through a series of exercises—lifting heavy objects, running laps, doing push-ups. The results were... average. His physical strength didn't impress, but it wasn't a disaster either.
"Alright. Five hundred health points. Not bad, though nothing to write home about," Elghot noted, scribbling something in the journal. "But what really interests me is your magic."
Kano blinked at him in surprise.
"But… I barely have any mana. I can't even light a spark."
Elghot grinned slyly.
"Oh, we'll fix that. What matters is learning to use every drop of mana you've got. And I have just the idea."
The orcish woman, who'd been silently observing from the sidelines, raised an eyebrow.
"What are you up to now, Elghot?"
"A very simple task to help him build focus," the mage replied, rubbing his hands together. "Kano, your first assignment—use magic to untie the knot on her corset."
Kano's face turned scarlet, as if it might explode.
"WHAT?!"
"Only with your mind," Elghot clarified, raising a finger. "Visualize the knot coming undone. Focus. It's a test of precision and control over your mana."
"You're joking, right?" Kano muttered, but one look at the mage's dead-serious expression told him otherwise.
He shut his eyes, trying to concentrate. But his thoughts were a chaotic mess: This is wrong. I can't do this. How does this even work? What if I mess it up?
The orc woman crossed her arms under her chest and watched his futile attempts in silence. Time passed. The knot didn't budge.
Elghot frowned. A memory flickered in his mind—of two elves teaching their child to take their first steps.
"Kano," he said, leaning toward him, "have you ever untied a knot before?"
"Of course! A million times!"
"Then remember how that felt. Imagine the tension, the way your fingers tugged at the rope." His voice softened, taking on a near-hypnotic tone. "Now, imagine you're doing that—except with her corset. As if that's the one thing you want most in the world."
Kano swallowed hard and tried again. He stared at the knot, imagining himself pulling at it, visualizing every movement. His face grew serious—so focused he no longer saw or heard anything around him.
And then suddenly—his strength drained, and darkness swallowed him. He collapsed.
At that exact moment, the knot snapped free.
The orc woman yelped, spinning around in shock. She clutched the corset to her chest, holding it in place.
"Perverts! I swear, I'll kill you! A hundred times over!" she muttered through clenched teeth, frantically tying it back.
A few minutes later, Kano was sprawled across the arena floor, pale as a ghost.
"Get a potion—fast! He won't wake up otherwise!" Elghot barked.
"Idiots, all of you…" the orc woman growled under her breath. "Fine." She pulled a small vial from somewhere deep within her cleavage and rushed to Kano's side. Kneeling beside him, she gently lifted his head and poured the potion into his mouth.
As she did, she paused. Her gaze lingered on Kano's face longer than expected. He's… kind of cute, she thought to herself, even for a human.
A dreamy little smile touched her lips. She finished giving him the potion just as his eyes fluttered open.
The first thing he saw—her massive bust hovering inches from his nose.
"I've ended up at your feet twice now… and I still don't know your name," he murmured, blushing furiously.
She blinked, then smirked—this time with a hint of mischief.
"It's Naira. Remember it, kid. Because I'm not saving your ass a third time."
Elghot chuckled and stepped closer.
"So, Naira… Think he's ready for the next phase? Or would you like to test his reactions a bit more?"
"I'll test you if you actually do something useful for once," she snapped, still cradling Kano's head in her lap.
The mage straightened, eyeing Kano thoughtfully. Then his gaze shifted to a magical device nearby, one that tracked mana levels. His brows shot up in surprise.
"One-fifty? Seriously?" he murmured. "You just boosted your mana, kid. Finally! Now we're getting somewhere."
Naira glanced over at Elghot—only to catch his sly grin. Her eyes widened instantly.
"Not a chance in hell!" she yelled, jumping to her feet and storming out of the arena.
A few minutes later, she returned—carrying a coil of rope and a whole crate full of low-grade mana potions. She slammed them down at the edge of the arena with a scowl.
"Here! For you lunatics! And good freaking luck!"
With a huff, she turned on and marched a little away, muttering curses under her breath.
Meanwhile, Elghot leaned down to Kano with a smirk that said this is only the beginning.
"Do you remember the first time you untied a knot, Kano?"
Elghot's voice was calm, almost playful.
Kano, still dazed, furrowed his brows.
"Not really…"
The mage winked, lips curling into a grin.
"Well, let's try again then—reinforce those neural pathways."
Kano steadied himself, eyes locked on the knot of Naira's corset. He imagined tugging at the cords, visualizing every detail. The world faded. Nothing existed but the knot… and his will.
Suddenly, it loosened.
Naira let out a startled gasp and dropped into a crouch, clutching her corset to her chest with a furious cry.
"I swear, I'll kill you perverts!"
The sight hit Kano like a brick wall. He blacked out instantly, collapsing for the second time that day. Muttering a string of very creative curses, Naira retied her corset in record time and stormed off the arena floor, never once looking back.
Elghot, meanwhile, plucked one of the mana potions from the crate and knelt by the unconscious boy.
"Well, kid," he muttered, helping him drink, "I guess it's time we get serious."
Then, without warning, the mage tied his own hands with rope and sat down cross-legged, a devilish smile spreading across his face as he waited for Kano to wake up.
When Kano finally came to, anger was already surging in his chest. "That damn mage humiliated me—twice! Right in front of her!" His face burned hot with embarrassment. "Oh, he's gonna pay for that..."
"You know what, old man?" Kano whispered as he pushed himself up and turned toward Elghot. "Let me show you just how well I learned your little knot trick."
The mage raised an eyebrow, amused. He had no idea what was coming.
Kano raised his hands. His focus was razor-sharp. He imagined the rope twisting—not just untying, but coiling around Elghot's neck.
The rope twitched. Then writhed. Then shot up, wrapping tightly around the mage's throat like a serpent.
Caught completely off guard, Elghot gasped and clawed at his neck.
"Wha—what the—!" he rasped, struggling to loosen the magical snare.
Then Kano collapsed again, spent. No mana left. No energy.
Elghot ripped the rope free, coughing hard.
"You little maniac!" he barked, red-faced. "That's how you thank me?!"
He grabbed another vial from the crate, stormed back to the boy, and forced the potion down his throat.
As Kano stirred, the mage leaned in, his tone now laced with frustration.
"I've been treating you like a lost puppy, and this is how you repay me? You try to strangle me?!"
Still dizzy, Kano gave a bitter smirk.
"Oh, I'm so sorry, oh great and mighty mentor. You only humiliated me in front of a girl—twice! How do you expect me to even look her in the eye now? How do I talk to her again after that?"
His voice cracked with emotion.
"You've ruined my life…"
Elghot threw up his hands.
"You hopeless little fool. Enough whining. Wipe your nose, stand up straight, and let's get back to training—or we'll be here till the end of the century."
But in his mind, the mage was thinking, Wait… has he seriously never been with a woman? His gaze drifted toward the arena exit. Okay, sure, Naira's… well, quite the sight for an orc. And the kid's falling apart from just a little exposure? What's he gonna do when he meets a beastkin girl? Or gods forbid… an elf maiden?
Curious, Elghot glanced over at the mana projection crystal—and whistled.
"Three hundred already?" he muttered, impressed. But then he noticed something else. His own mana level blinked back at him: 950,000.
Kano saw it too.
He dropped to the floor like a puppet with cut strings, pressing his forehead to the cold stone. His face twisted with despair and self-loathing.
"Monster… monster… monster…" he whispered, eyes fixed on the numbers.
Elghot sighed. He sat beside him, voice softer now.
"Listen, kid. I've wasted a thousand years. Fought in pointless wars. Killed for things that never mattered. That power you're so scared of? It didn't make me better. Quite the opposite."
But Kano didn't hear him. He just kept repeating that one word.
And then—Naira walked back in.
This time, she wore a loose linen shirt with a plunging neckline.
"So," she said casually, looking around, "how's it going in here?"
Her eyes landed on Kano, still curled up on the arena floor.
Elghot's grin returned. Inspiration sparked.
"You wouldn't believe it, Naira," he said, striding toward her like a showman taking the stage. "Our little recruit nearly strangled me during training! It was an epic duel—lightning, fire, chaos! Just like in the legends!"
Kano heard the mage's words and slowly began to rise.
His face flushed with a mix of shame and fury.
"Stop… just stop!" he snapped, glaring at Elghot. "I said, enough! You've embarrassed me enough in front of her already! Cut the fairy tales!"
Elghot merely chuckled, continuing his dramatic retelling as if nothing had happened. But Kano had had it. His voice rang out across the arena, sharp and defiant:
"I will surpass your power! And I won't need a thousand years to do it!"
His words echoed like a war cry. A vow. The first true challenge he'd ever thrown into the face of fate.
Naira, who had been watching from the edge of the arena, raised an eyebrow and smirked.
"Well, looks like you two are doing just fine," she muttered before turning and walking away.
Elghot sighed, clearly annoyed, but didn't stop her. He turned back to Kano, his expression shifting from amused to menacing.
"Well then, boy, brace yourself. You're not gonna like what's coming," he said, that familiar twisted grin curling on his lips. "I'm going to torture you here, over and over, until you learn. And if you die? I'll resurrect you and keep going. There's one way out: just hit me. Once."
Kano stared at him. His eyes burned with determination.
"I have to figure this out… I've seen so much anime about magic—fire, water, earth, wind—it's got to work! I'll show him!"
Elghot raised his hands. The coliseum darkened. Bolts of lightning slammed into the ground around Kano. The mage floated above, his body wreathed in black flames that flickered like fire from the underworld.
Kano stood his ground, eyes locked on the mage. He raised his hand and shouted:
"Fireball!"
…Nothing.
Elghot blinked.
"Pillar of Water! Earth Wall!"
Still nothing.
The mage descended slowly, shaking his head. He approached the boy and mocked gently,
"So? Maestro? That all you got?"
Kano dropped his gaze, lips pressed into a tight line. But then it hit him—the knot. That memory. That moment of pure focus, the clarity of desire and intent. That had worked.
"It worked because I really saw it. Felt it. Every detail."
His eyes widened.
He looked up, clenched his fist, and faced Elghot again.
"Now you'll see!"
He focused everything—his will, his thoughts, his raw emotion—on the idea of flame. On the feeling of fire. A tiny spark flickered into life in his left hand. He stared at it, stunned but elated.
The flame grew.
Elghot's smirk faded.
"Kano, that's enough! You're losing control! It'll burn you alive!"
"No!" Kano yelled, his face twisting with effort. "I've got this!"
But the fire surged higher, wild and red, filling the air like a living beast. His mana drained to zero, and a scream tore from his throat—painful, raw, as if the flame was devouring him from the inside out.
Elghot immediately threw up a barrier. The heat warped the air. Kano's body lifted from the ground, engulfed in a blazing inferno—red and radiant, but with a demonic, overwhelming intensity far beyond ordinary fire.
The mage barely had time to react.
That fire… it's not normal. It's not just magic. It's— a deafening explosion rocked the coliseum.
Cracks spiderwebbed across the arena walls. The viewing stands trembled. Even Elghot's barrier fractured. The blast hurled him across the floor, slamming him to his knees near the entrance.
Coughing, he scrambled to his feet and rushed to where Kano had landed—crumpled, motionless, and smoking.
"Don't die, kid! Do NOT die on me!" Elghot shouted, pulling out a mana potion and pouring it between the boy's lips. He followed it with healing magic, hands glowing as he pressed them to Kano's chest.
But Kano didn't open his eyes.
Elghot waited—one breath, two, five more.
Nothing.
With a long, weary sigh, the mage lifted Kano into his arms. The boy was limp, his skin pale, his mana utterly drained.
Elghot strode toward the exit, shouting:
"I need help!"
Two dwarves came running and took Kano from him, carefully supporting his weight.
Naira stood behind the guild counter. Her arms crossed under her chest, she watched the scene unfold with narrowed eyes.
"Where do you want to put him?" she asked flatly. "He'll need rest."
"Follow me," Naira said curtly, and the dwarves obeyed without a word.
Carrying Kano up the staircase proved to be… problematic. Their short stature meant his legs dragged, and worse, his head knocked against the stone steps more than once. Thud. Thud.
The third time, his helmet slipped off and clattered loudly down the stairs.
"Careful, you clods!" Naira snapped, scooping up the helmet with a sharp glare. "Are you trying to finish him off?!"
The dwarves muttered apologetically, red-faced, and quickened their pace. They finally laid Kano down in a small room on the second floor—plain, with a modest bed and a single window letting in shafts of golden light. Without a word, they turned and left.
When Elghot made his way back to the front hall, still brushing soot from his robes, someone was already waiting for him at the counter.
Lenor.
The Guildmaster.
Tall, imposing, with piercing green eyes and long white hair bound in a high tail. His presence alone could silence a riot. And right now, his expression was thunder.
Jaw tight. Gaze sharp as a blade. Fury radiating from every inch of him.
Elghot froze.
Lenore said angrily, "You're going to my office with Naira."