Drawing Lines like Crazy to Cast Spells?

Lian's mind was in complete disarray.

"What happened?!" he murmured in disbelief, his gaze shifting from his hands to the site of the explosion.

A small cloud of dust, dirt, and debris hid the monster's body.

But no one doubted its death.

Lian had no idea how, but the moment he uttered the spell's name, something inside him began to stir.

It was the same sensation he felt when he first tried magic with the other spell, Ignis Arde, Flamma Parva.

The mana began to flow through his body, rushing straight to his hands, and as he completed the circle, the mana condensed into a fireball, far more powerful than his previous attempts.

"Perhaps I was more precise this time?" he thought, reading the notification.

[Accuracy: 40%]

"…Alright, perhaps precision has nothing to do with it."

As he pondered these things, the dust cloud settled, revealing the Shadow Wolf's condition to everyone.

The monster was nowhere to be seen—at least, not in its entirety.

The explosion had been so violent that it tore the wolf apart. Pieces of limbs were scattered around, while entrails, organs, and blood decorated the rest of the scene.

"Tch, amateur work. A pointless waste of mana for nothing."

A scornful voice broke the silence that had fallen.

It was Sera.

She did not like how the boy had stolen all the attention with such an… unjustified and graceless explosion.

"Now I will show you how a spell should be cast!"

As if challenging Lian, the girl turned to find her prey.

The monsters had resumed their relentless, futile assault; about a dozen remained. Sera targeted a monster that was eyeing her.

The Shadow Wolf's eyes were fixed on her, ready to strike at the right moment.

"Do not even try," she muttered, taking a small step back.

Locking eyes with the monster, a faint smile formed on Sera's face.

"Take this!" she said as she chanted her spell.

"Ignis Arde, Ignis Globus!"

The incantation was, of course, the same as Lian's. However, there was no massive fireball or a grand explosion.

A fire projectile shot toward the monster with incredible speed. Despite being prepared, the beast could not dodge at all.

The shot pierced the Shadow Wolf's eye with precision, exploding inside its skull.

The beast collapsed to the ground, lifeless. A clean strike, with no collateral damage. Moreover, the carcass remained intact, increasing its value.

"This is how magic should be used!" Sera said, looking down at Lian, who stood with his mouth agape.

Even the Knights widened their eyes at the sight. Though not magic users, they could tell Sera's version was superior, more refined, compared to Lian's spell.

Elder Patrick, already familiar with Sera's skills, gave a slight nod.

Despite Sera's blatant mockery, Lian did not dwell on it too much. He was still thinking about his own attack and how to improve it.

"I must learn to control my mana like she does, I can't rely solely on my system." Lian resolved, gripping his sword tighter as he eyed Sera's effortless precision.

However, he had no intention of continuing to use magic, lest he exhaust himself for later.

Unlike Sera, Lian could not use the flame-summoning spell as she did, so for now, he had to settle for using his sword.

"There you go," Sera said with a smirk as she killed the last monster, its skin charred and its expression still agonized.

The Shadow Wolves in this area had all been slain. In total, there were 23 carcasses, including those torn apart.

"Well done, everyone," Elder Patrick said with a slight nod before continuing. "Now we must explore the area to find the remaining monsters."

The others exchanged satisfied looks. This first test had not been too difficult. Despite being their first time fighting together, the Knights had coordinated fairly well.

The group moved forward, united as always.

Sera no longer used her magic to light the area—not because she did not want to, but because it was a waste of mana.

But visibility was not an issue. Despite the fog and unstable terrain, everyone there was superhuman, capable of navigating difficult environments.

After walking for about ten minutes, one of the Knights at the front of the group noticed something on the ground.

"Tracks. These are quite large," he said, crouching to examine them.

"Hm," another added. "They are still fresh. The monsters might be nearby."

"Well, there is nothing to fear. We have already faced a pack of Shadow Wolves; all we need to do is kill the rest. Let us follow the tracks and catch them off guard!"

The voice belonged to one of the Dustwall Knights, the only Iron 5 among them, Dax Reed. As one of the strongest in his city, arrogance had always followed him wherever he went.

Even now, watching how Sera and Lian moved, Dax did not believe he could be defeated by them.

In fact, killing them would be child's play. He did not think Mages were all that powerful.

Sure, part of it was envy. Shooting fireballs from your hands? It was everyone's dream, impossible to deny.

"Hey, we must not be arrogant. Ever. What we face could even be a Steel-rank monster. We cannot say for certain," a Grimreach Knight said, voicing the thoughts of many in the group.

However, not everyone agreed.

When the Steel-rank monster was mentioned, all eyes turned to Elder Patrick, the only one capable of facing it.

"Well, we need not fear a Steel-rank," Dax Reed said, with a nod of acknowledgment toward the Mage. "And no Iron 5 monster can harm us; we are better than them."

Dax's words were not entirely wrong. But for one reason… they did not know the power of a Steel-rank. They believed it was merely stronger than an Iron 5, not invincible. They thought they could defeat it together.

But it was not their fault. After all, no Steel-rank had ever appeared in Dustwall. At most, an Iron 5 monster showed up, but it was easily handled by a group.

Moreover, they had never seen Elder Patrick fight and assumed his strength could rival theirs.

Well, they were mistaken.

Before anyone could say more, Elder Patrick raised a hand.

A gust of wind appeared from nowhere, surging toward the three men, pushing them back a few steps.

The air fell silent. Lian trembled slightly at the power he had witnessed. A wind strong enough to knock back three grown men in heavy armor.

"Unbelievable, can you use magic with that power without a chant?" Lian thought silently.

The facial expressions of Dax and the other two betrayed the anger they felt for what they had endured. They wanted to make him pay!