Leo, thrown back by the force of his own spell, was back on his feet, panting hard. Sweat trickled down his forehead, dripping into the dust below. Even as a C-plus ranked, maintaining control over that many spells simultaneously had pushed him to his limit.
Across from him, Ivo lay motionless on the ground, unmoving for several tense seconds. The crowd around them stood frozen, some with eyes wide in disbelief, others with hands over their mouths in stunned silence.
Then, the giant man stirred. With a low groan, Ivo rose to his feet once more. A savage gash now split his stomach, blood pouring freely from the wound. Crimson streaks ran from the corner of his mouth, a sign of the internal damage he'd taken. His eyes glowed an ominous red, and a violent aura of orange mana coiled around his body.
"I'll kill you now," he growled, his voice low and ragged.
He charged with even greater speed than before, moving like a blur toward Leo—far too fast for him to react.
But just before Ivo reached his target, a flash of silver streaked through the air. Something—someone—struck him mid-charge. The impact slammed him to the ground, his massive greatsword flying from his grip.`
Leo blinked in surprise, then looked toward the one who'd intervened. It was Klaus. Standing over Ivo, he pressed the edge of his blade against the defeated man's throat.
"To use Berserk on someone below your rank… you should be ashamed," Klaus said, his voice raised for all to hear. "This battle is already over. You lost."
Ivo said nothing, his red eyes locked on Klaus with seething fury.
Klaus's sword vanished as suddenly as it had appeared, dissolving into motes of energy. He turned to Leo, his tone softening.
"Shall we head back?"
Leo exhaled slowly, brushing the dust off his clothes before nodding. Around them, the crowd erupted in cheers and applause. Some clapped wildly, others shouting.
Joe made his way through the crowd, clapping as he approached. "Well done, Victor. I've never seen a C-rank fight like that."
Leo gave a small, serious smile. "I've had my share of experience."
Joe glanced at Ivo, who still lay on the ground, bloodied and silent. "Yeah... no kidding."
"We'll head back for now," Klaus said, giving Joe a nod. "See you around."
Leo gave a quick nod in agreement and followed after him.
Joe raised a hand in farewell. "See you around," he said, then turned back to look at Ivo—still too humiliated to stand—before heading back to his shop.
When they returned, Klaus knocked on the mansion's door. It opened moments later to reveal Estelle.
"Good morning, Ms. Estelle," Klaus said politely as he stepped inside.
"Good morning, Klaus." Her eyes shifted to Leo, her brow raising slightly. "And I see you're still here."
Leo smiled. "I'm the lady's student now. You'll be seeing a lot more of me."
Estelle returned the smile. "Good, good."
Klaus handed over several of the items he'd purchased to her, and then he and Leo moved to the teleportation room. In a flash of light, they were transported to the upper city. As they stepped out of the teleport chamber, a maid stood waiting for them.
"Mr. Black, the lady is expecting you in the inner library."
Klaus handed the rest of the packages to her. "Take care of these. I'll bring him over after we patch up your wounds."
The maid nodded and walked off.
"It's nothing," Leo said, looking at him.
But Klaus led him to a room where a group of maids used a healing spell on him. They then wrapped his arm in bandages—the only area that still needed a bit more care to fully heal.
Afterward, they headed toward where Alexia was.
Leo glanced around as they started down the hall. "How many libraries are there in this place?"
"Honestly?" Klaus chuckled. "I've been here for years and I still have no idea. It changes all the time."
After a few minutes of winding through the vast corridors, they reached a quiet room filled wall-to-wall with bookshelves. In the center, seated on a velvet sofa, was Alexia. A thick book rested in her lap, her eyes scanning the pages intently.
Klaus remained by the door while Leo stepped forward and gave a respectful bow. "You wanted to see me?"
"Yes. Sit down," she said without looking up.
Leo sat across from her and waited in silence as she finished the last few lines of her book. After a moment, she closed it gently and set it on the table between them. Then, her eyes met his—sharp and assessing.
"After your battle today, can you tell me what you're lacking?"
Leo blinked, surprised. 'How does she know about that already?' But then he remembered—she was an S-rank. At that level, very little was impossible.
He took a moment to think before answering. "A strong offensive spell?"
"That's only part of it," Alexia replied with a sigh. "You're looking at the small picture. Your entire fighting style is flawed. You rely on creating one decisive moment—one chance to win. You pour all your energy and skills into that single strike, and if it fails… you're finished. Until now, luck has been on your side. That won't last."
Leo sat back, processing her words. "So… how do I fix it?"
"You're an illusionist," she said, her gaze narrowing slightly. "But you fight like an enchanter. Illusions aren't about power. They're about control, disruption, misdirection. I'm going to teach you how to make illusions a weapon, not a gimmick."
She stood and turned toward the door. "Follow me."
Leo quickly got to his feet and walked with her. At the door, she dismissed Klaus with a nod. "You can leave us."
Klaus gave a short bow and stepped back.
Alexia led Leo into a small training room. It was stark and simple, with only a single one-meter stone pedestal in the center. Atop it sat a glowing orb pulsing with soft blue light.
"You have a lot of illusion spells, but most of them are useless against stronger opponents," she said as she walked toward the orb. "Right now, the only way you can reliably use them is through that ring on your hand—and even that's limited."
'Of course she knows about my ring too,' Leo thought with a faint, inward smile.
She turned back to him. "Having dozens of spells you can't manage in real time is pointless. So, the first thing we're going to do is fuse most of your illusions into a single spell. Then, I'll teach you how to cast them directly into the air—without scrolls, without items, and without a ring."
Leo nodded, this was the beginning of a very different kind of training.
Alexia placed her hand on the orb, and the room began to shift. The small chamber around them stretched and morphed, walls fading away into open space. Within seconds, they stood in a vast training yard with a single wooden dummy positioned at the far end.
"In this room," she said, stepping back from the orb, "you can turn illusions into reality. It's the perfect place for training. Later, when I teach you a new spell, you'll come here to practice."
Leo glanced around, awe written across his face.
"But don't get carried away with your imagination," Alexia warned. "The mana required to maintain this space is massive. It's directly linked to the house's core. Use it too much, and you'll disrupt the house's functions. Also you can get yourself killed."
Leo was speechless. In this place, the person controlling the orb was like a god—able to reshape the world with a thought.
He stepped closer to the orb, curiosity gleaming in his eyes. "So… it can really create anything?"
"That depends on your imagination," Alexia said simply.
"How does it work? Could it be used outside this room?"
"It's a blend of pure magic, advanced illusion, and deep enchantment," she explained. "Turning illusion into reality outside this space is impossible—even for me."
Her tone shifted slightly at the end. It was subtle, but Leo could tell she'd tried… and failed.
"Try it," she said.
Leo hesitated for just a second, then placed his hand on the orb.
The yard shimmered and transformed, trees rising from the ground, thick vines wrapping around them. In an instant, the training field was gone—replaced by a dense jungle. Moments later, the sound of movement echoed through the foliage, and a pack of wolves began to emerge from the shadows, eyes glowing. Leo's eyes widened. They looked—and felt—real.
'If someone could do this in the real world… they'd be unstoppable.'
The wolves crept closer, growling low. With just a thought, Leo shattered the illusion, and the jungle dissolved into mist. The room returned to normal.
"Good work," Alexia said with a small nod. "Now let's head back to the library. You have a lot to learn."
He turned to follow her, but a sudden thought made him stop. "Ms. Ale—"
"Call me Master," Alexia interrupted without turning.
Leo blinked, then nodded. "Master… what if someone imagined something dangerous? Like a god… or a demon?"
Alexia paused at the door. "That's why I told you not to go too far with your imagination," she said, her voice calm but firm. "This room has the ability to create real versions of what you imagine. If you conjure a demon—you may not survive it."
Leo's eyes narrowed slightly, gears already turning in his head.
'So If I imagine something too powerful, I could die in the process.'
His thoughts spiraled deeper. 'Wait... what if someone imagined a being more powerful than the room itself? Something beyond what the system can handle—would it still be created? Would it become real… completely real? Would it escape the room's control? Wouldn't that break the 'only works inside' rule?'
The idea chilled him.
Alexia glanced back and raised an eyebrow. "Don't get any ideas. This place is a training tool—not a weapon. And believe me, the last person who ignored that… isn't around to tell the story."
Leo snapped out of his thoughts. "The last person?"
"My first student created a monster in that room—so powerful it nearly broke free. It's also what killed him," she said, her voice flat. "I tried to save him, but I couldn't." She pointed at the scar on her face. "Before I killed the creature, it gave me this."
They returned to the same room, though something about it had changed. The window was now larger, casting more light across the shelves and furniture. After they sat down, Alexia continued without pause.
"I'll give you the important parts. You'll find the rest in the books I gave you. Once you've learned the spells, you'll go back to that room, create a creature—C-rank at most—and use it to test your illusions."
Leo nodded silently.
"The first thing is fusing your spells. You use Fear, Mind Control, Sadness, Pride, and others to create openings. But all of them are just illusions. From now on, every effect you want—even those you use on yourself—must come from Illusion alone."
Leo decided to stay quiet about not knowing what some of the spells were. Just then, the door opened and two maids entered, carrying a luxurious tea tray. As they set it on the table and began pouring the tea, Alexia continued speaking without pause.
"And that's your first step. Next, you'll learn Silence, Dream, and Phantom. The first two are mostly used in covert missions, but Phantom is essential—one of the best tools an illusionist can use at B-rank. Once you reach A-rank, we'll talk about Shifting Realities and forming your own domain."
'Isn't giving all that information dangerous?' Leo thought. He already had a domain, but the way she spoke so casually about it to a C-rank caught him off guard.
"What's a domain?" he asked, keeping his voice even to avoid suspicion as he took a sip of his tea.
"Something you'll learn about later," she said simply.
"Is that all?"
"One more thing," she replied. "You need to learn all of this within one month. After that, you can Learn Real Illusion. And alongside that, you'll need to study powerful offensive spells in enchanting." With that, a book appeared in her hand, and she opened it without another word. "You can go now."
Leo, having finished his tea, stood up. With a slight bow, he turned and left the room, following the maid who waited to escort him back to his quarters.