NOVEL WEB Chapter 4: I’m a Magical Deer
Naru’s lessons started early and close to the pond in the middle of the protected grove. Atop the pond was a floating crystal. The crystal gave a softly pulsating blue light and was constantly pouring a liquid into the pond. According to her father, the crystal was placed here by the goddess Celestine and was supplying the forest with life energy. The crystal also powered the barrier that protected the grove from hunters.
Drinking from the pond help recover mana which meant it was a nice spot to practice magic.
Her father was currently telling her the pointers of using magic.
The Magical Deer cast their mana through the crystal on their chest. This was a process that contained three steps.
Step One: Envision the result
Step Two: Gather mana within your body
Step Three: Channel the mana through your chest crystal to achieve the desired result.
In terms of what could be done, most deer had an affinity to one element, but Naru was lucky to have two which were earth and life magic, trying to cast magic outside of your affinity would cause the spell to have an extremely muted effect. If Naru tried to create a roaring blaze she would probably only be able to create a small flame the size of the candle.
Naru’s father had her start with small things like making small plants grow, which Naru was currently doing. Life magic was quite convenient it didn’t require the creator to provides seeds.
[Hmm, I wonder if I can do this?] Naru thought. She felt a pleasant flow of power emit from the gem in her chest, and to her amazement, she saw a small plant sprout from the ground grow to about knee-high, it immediately flowered and then grew a bulbous red tomato in an instant.
Her father looks confused
“What is this plant”
[Oh I guess they don't have tomatoes in this world] Naru thought. It seemed like she was able to grow plants that didn't exist in this world.
Plucking the red fruit from the vine Naru took a bite from it.
"Wait Naru!" Whitehorn tried to stop her, he must’ve thought it was a dangerous plant or something.
The tomato was deliciously tart and fresh. A line of tomato juice ran down Naru's mouth and she wiped it with her arm.
Whitehorn was currently giving her a very concerned look. He was surprisingly overprotective. Naru thought he was the type who would throw children in the pool to teach them how to swim.
Naru gave her father a quizzical look, feigning ignorance.
“Naru please don’t eat suspicious plants even if you make them yourself.” He said exasperated.
[Mhmm, this is no good] Naru thought
“But’s really really really tasty papa!” She said in her innocent childlike voice.
She instantly grew another tomato and offered it to her father.
He took the tomato out of her and gave it a few suspicious sniffs.
[Can you please not look so much like a caveman while doing that] She internally pleaded. Her father was acting like a feral animal who had just been prevent with food.
[Well, I guess he's kind of a feral animal in a way] Naru thought.
He tentatively took a bite, and then another, and before long his hand was completely empty.
He looked almost sad that the tomato had disappeared so quickly.
“Do you want another” Naru asked helpfully.
Her father nodded and Naru grew another tomato which Whitehorn ate with gusto.
Wiping the tomato juice from his face he said
“You're just like your mother, she also grew me food”
Looking at the very satisfied Whitehorn Naru suddenly had a thought.
[Mother really seduced father, by feeding him? Is deer courtship that simple!]
Besides making small plants grow, Naru was also practicing her earth magic. At the moment, all she could really do was make mounds of earth bump from the ground, but she was still quite proud of herself.
She was limited by her mana right now and although it would grow, she wasn’t able to do much of anything.
Drinking from the water in the pond at least helped her mana regenerate quickly.
Naru spent her days with her father learning how to use magic. When she got tired, she would drink from the pond and rest before practicing further. Her father seemed to look at her with a tired expression.
“Yer, still doing it?” He asked her.
It seemed like he meant for this practice session to be small thing.
“Why not?” Naru asked. She was having fun using magic. It was something that wasn’t in her old world and it was a completely new sensation for her.
Her father looked bored. Naru realized that watching his daughter do the same things over and over again with magic was probably not very interesting
“You can leave,” She told him
“Are you sure, You don’t need any help?” He said suddenly returning his attention to Naru.
[He’s surprisingly diligent]
“It’s okay papa,” Naru said giving a beaming smile.
Her father seemed to be reassured by the smile.
“Alright, if you need anything let me know alright”
Naru didn’t respond verbally and only nodded. She was busy trying to make more earth bumps.
It was relaxing in a way. Naru had gotten to the point where she was making earth waves on the ground.
It was amusing to watch because it looked like water waves.
And so Naru spent her days playing with magic.
