I Couldn’t Afford to Buy Mana, so I Started Streaming

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**Whooooosh-!**

Outside, the blizzard was fiercely raging.

Seol Baek-ryeong, the Northern Sea Ice Palace Princess, firmly locked the window to keep the wind out.

The man was more commonly known as Helgar Asvick.

His blue gaze, overlooking the training arena, gradually dulled.

“Where’s the NoName client?”

At Asvick’s question, the PMC staff all scratched their heads.

“It seems they have mostly completed our usual interpersonal combat curriculum.”

“Huh, and it’s only the fifth day. What am I supposed to do now?”

The Northern Sea Ice Palace, a legacy of ancestors who hid in the icy lands of Svalbard to rebuild their sect after escaping the Great Purge of Russia.

Currently, they provided extreme cold training and military strategy consulting services to various countries, establishing themselves as a unique figure in polar training.

‘Although sometimes wandering mages and magic duelists come to train alone…’

It was shocking beyond expectation that NoName came to them directly.

[Spellcasting: Glacies Diminu tio]

Na-me rushed towards the girl across from her, compressing ice crystals in the air.

‘Even six of them.’

Using six instances of Diminu tio ice magic is theoretically its maximum efficiency.

The six ice crystals spun around Na-me’s right arm while maintaining a precise angle of 60 degrees.

“Wow!”

“That was an incredibly clean execution.”

“That speed’s impressive!”

“The National Exchange Tournament Champion is definitely on another level…”

Bang-bang-bang-!

Simultaneously, a straight punch was unleashed.

Biiiing-!

[Training complete. Training complete. Both players please stand at least 10m apart.]

“Good job, Luri.”

“Whew! Call me anytime.”

Na-me lightly patted Luri’s head and moved to deactivate the barrier.

“Who is that?”

“That’s from the NoName Mage family.”

“How can a kid have no fear? I mean, even though the barrier’s up.”

“Is she around 11, or maybe 12?”

“How would I know? Anyway, her proficiency with the Demon King’s Horn is quite remarkable.”

The girl with the black horn occasionally appeared as Na-me’s training partner.

In this place, Luri’s presence was certainly not lacking.

While the PMC staff were chatting, Asvick descended to the training arena to greet them.

“That was excellent magic. Did you encounter any discomfort while using Diminu tio?”

“Ah, no. I’ll need to use it more to know for sure, but its stability seems pretty good, so I think I can apply it in various situations.”

Having received Na-me’s approval, Asvick felt secretly pleased.

If the magic developed for military use became frequently useful in magic duels, the reputation of the Northern Sea Ice Palace would naturally rise.

“What’s the next curriculum?”

Na-me asked, tidying her disheveled hair.

Asvick’s worries deepened.

It wasn’t an easy job to coach world-class athletes.

[I’ll pay double the training fees. Can I start training the day after tomorrow?]

Since money had exchanged hands, they had no choice but to do their best.

‘With offensive magic like Diminu tio, Fluctuosus, and Amento. For defensive magic, Tardatio, Lacunosus, and Retardo…’

However, Na-me’s ability to absorb information was beyond imagination, and the Northern Sea Ice Palace’s curriculum was depleted in just five days.

In such circumstances, they couldn’t endlessly run through infinite interpersonal combat training like a homework game.

What if she decided, ‘Ugh, there’s nothing to do, the content is lacking,’ and returned to her homeland?

‘That absolutely must be avoided.’

Asvick made a decision.

“NoName Mage, you will be taking the Skiabona form of the wand you used last year, correct?”

“Huh? No? I’m thinking of renting a decent brand in Texas instead.”

“W-what did you say?”

You haven’t even decided on a weapon yet?

Asvick’s eyes quaked in disbelief.

Na-me shrugged as if asking, “What’s the problem?”

Helgar Asvick glimpsed potential here.

“Would you like to try the Ice and Snow Black Shadow Sword?”

“Asvick! I mean, Your Highness!”

“It’s a product created in collaboration with the Richmont Group a few years back, and it’s quite a troublesome item. Oh, are you interested?”

Na-me’s eyes glittered brightly as she moved closer.

He pulled out his phone and began explaining while showing a picture.

“It’s a one-of-a-kind item crafted as a treasure of the Northern Sea Ice Palace. Since its value cannot be appraised, it cannot be sent to war, and it feels awkward to use it for training.”

“That makes sense.”

“But for a magic duel, especially one as globally renowned as the National Exchange Tournament, it makes a difference. Perhaps it was born just for this day? You can keep it as a spare weapon, Mage. What do you think?”

“What makes it so special?”

“Special features? There are many. But the most remarkable functionality is…”

Na-me’s eyes sparkled brighter than ever as she looked at the wand.

* * *

The pinnacle of minimalism.

Typically, a Light Transmutation Circle Inscriber’s mechanical part would serve as a sword’s handle.

Naturally, most wands have thick handles.

That being said, the Ice and Snow Black Shadow Sword, or Bbangsil-yi as it’s abbreviated, was different.

‘It doesn’t even have a handle.’

The wand is designed to attach to the arm or back of the hand.

Wherever I grab the mana blade, through the electronic control unit, the section I hold transforms into a handle-like grip.

During combat, I could freely extend and retract the blade’s length, and even…

“Hmm, is this how it works?”

I stretched my hand into the air.

A duplicate blade materialized in mid-air.

I discarded the sword I was holding and grabbed the newly generated blade.

Ding-!

With a cheerful notification sound, the new blade was magically attached to the wand as if drawn by a magnet.

“Wow, that’s amazing!”

So amazing that I began jumping in place.

In fact, I had already used it earlier when the Princess of the Northern Sea Ice Palace handed it to me, so this was my second use.

But no matter how many times I saw it, it was just too fascinating.

“What do you think, Unni?”

Left alone in the training arena for some supplementary training with Luri.

“What do you think?”

“I think it’s a perplexing sword.”

“Perplexing… that’s right. I’ve never seen a sword like this in my life.”

I agreed with Luri’s opinion.

[This really is a troublesome item.]

I understood the Princess’s point as well.

On a regular day, there would be no reason to simply discard a sword.

If the sword’s length changed all the time, it would only increase one’s confusion.

Also, a swordsman might not trust a blade operated by an ECU all that much either.

‘I think Emika would like it… though I won’t know until I ask her.’

Receiving the Bbangsil-yi, I sparred with Luri again.

Luri’s magic always cast at lightning speed.

Thanks to her cheating skill, “Yong-eon.”

[Cast: Ignis Ascensio]

“Huh!”

The moment Luri’s fire magic shot out like beams, I instinctively grabbed the sword and swung it.

Whoosh-

“Oh no! That’s not how I should swing it!”

The sword couldn’t slice through the essence of the magic.

By accident, Luri lunged at me like a hawk.

I crossed my arms to deflect her charge, but she pivoted and slammed her shoulder into me again.

BANG-!

We became tangled together.

If caught in a submission, a barrier penalty of 10 to 25% would be imposed.

This isn’t a common situation in magic dueling.

Luri pinned me to the ground and gained the upper hand.

As she aimed to bind my ankles with the Arabesque Knot and pound on me…

“Luri, are you gonna hit me?”

“…!”

“Gotcha!”

Using the Bbangsil-yi, I broke free from the Arabesque binding and kicked Luri away.

“No! Oh no! Huuuh. Uuuugh… Ugh…!”

Suppressing her frustration, Luri seemed on the verge of tears.

The sight was so funny that we momentarily paused the duel.

“I’m sorry, Luri!”

“Th-that’s against the rules during a duel! I was in the advantage…”

“I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Aww, did you feel hurt?”

I hurried over and patted her back.

What I said was just an impulsive remark borne out of my embarrassment from making a mistake.

“Ugh. Hah. *Sniff*. Hehe.”

“Are you laughing or crying…?”

Did we duel too much today and heat our heads?

In any case, I grasped her hand, and we headed back to our accommodation.

At the Northern Sea Ice Palace’s garden statue, a thin layer of ice covered it.

Occasionally, birds would land to check if any stray feed had fallen, then soar back into the sky with vigor.

“Even at night, it’s as bright as day.”

“What time is it?”

“It’s 11 PM right now.”

“We’ve trained longer than I thought.”

Having eaten dinner and planning a brief digest-related training, three hours had already passed.

They confirmed they would set up a local training camp from Luxembourg by next week at the latest.

It felt like a good decision to drop by the Northern Sea Ice Palace, having gained Bbangsil-yi in the process.

Creeeeak-

“I’m back.”

“Huh?”

“Where is everyone? I think they took Nureongi out for a walk. Should I give them a call?”

I dialed Professor Cheon.

“Hello? Yes, Dad. Hehe, I’m on my way back now. Where are you?”

My face lit up soon after.

“Really? Okay, I’ll be there soon. Luri, make sure to wear your warm padding and let’s go.”

“Here, it’s your padding, Unni. Do we need warm boots too?”

“Yeah. They must have gone fishing at the lake. We should hurry.”

When else would we get to do night fishing under the bright sun like this?

I bundled up and headed towards the back gate of the Northern Sea Ice Palace camp.

As I almost reached the coordinates my dad sent me, a vast ice lake came into view.

In the distance, I could see people sitting amicably and casting their fishing rods.

“We’re here, Dad.”

“We’re back!”

“Geez, what kind of duel takes hours?”

“Well, we just got caught up in it… Oh, Saetbyeol! Did you catch a lot of fish?”

“Hehe.”

Cheon Saetbyeol kicked a bucket toward me with her foot.

“Whoa! They’re alive? This isn’t one of those fish prohibited for capture, right?”

I was astonished at the flapping fish thrashing around.

“Na-me Unni, I’m so doomed because of Dad…”

“What do you mean? Why?”

Suddenly, Saetbyeol frowned while fishing.

Professor Cheon looked a bit awkward beside her.

“I have to focus on studying, but fishing is just too fun, so I’m doomed!”

“You didn’t study at all today?”

“Yep…!”

“You can memorize vocabulary while fishing.”

“I can’t concentrate on fishing…”

I could see the English vocabulary book I had brought being shoved into a corner.

“But what’s that in your hand, Na-me?”

Professor Cheon noticed the wand strapped to my arm.

“This? I actually came to show you this.”

Whoooosh-

I displayed the white blade of Bbangsil-yi.

“Wow! What is this?”

“Oh, is it a wand?”

Only then did the audience show interest.

Swish-

I cut a perfect circle in the bottom of the ice lake, creating a hole.

“Do you have a fishing rod?”

“No, that’s all we’ve got.”

“Then I’ll grab some fish with a spear.”

The training name sounded like it would suit; “Wand Manipulation Adaptation Training” seemed fitting enough!