Using an ultra-short chant to unleash a powerful spell wasn't something Riveria was seeing for the first time.
The last "monster" like that… would have been the living embodiment of talent from the Hera Familia.
Back when she had first arrived in Orario, she'd been thoroughly beaten down by the two great familias.
And that outrageous woman—Alfia—had nearly punched her into losing all confidence.
Cid's talent was only above average. So why had he awakened a spell on Alfia's level?
Riveria didn't know. She could only assume the "price" of that spell's power was an enormous magical output requirement.
After thinking for a long time and arriving at a plausible answer, Riveria laughed—genuinely, freely.
"So there are still so many things in this world that even I don't know… even about magic, the thing I'm best at."
If only these juniors could grow faster…
Once they matured enough to stand on their own, Riveria intended to leave Loki Familia.
The world was vast. She wanted to see it.
"Lady Riveria… did I say something wrong?" Cid asked.
He shyly turned his head away, as though he couldn't bear to look at her smile.
As an elven royal, Riveria was beautiful—when she smiled, it was dazzling.
But Cid didn't waver.
This was simply the acting required of a proper "mob character."
Back in Astraea Familia, whenever he occasionally ran into Kaguya stepping outside in her underwear first thing in the morning, he'd worn the same expression.
"Cid, you…" Riveria was shaken to the core by his reaction.
Cid believed his expression was "normal," but in front of Riveria, that "normal" was the most abnormal thing of all.
As a revered elven royal known for impeccable character, Riveria had spent years meeting people who didn't even dare show her a smile.
She hated that attitude—she felt the respect was too distant, too cold.
In her own mind, she was still a not-quite-grown elf… just no longer the reckless country girl she had once been.
She still had boundless curiosity for the world.
Now, at last, she'd met a young man who wasn't overly reverent toward her—yet she couldn't bring herself to feel happy.
Because he wasn't overly reverent… but he also seemed far too unreverent.
Was he reacting to her as if she were just a "pretty girl"?
After the shock, Riveria didn't even know what expression she was supposed to wear.
She knew her heart still felt young—but she also knew she wasn't Ankie's age anymore.
"Cid. You won't have time to rest from here on out. Focus. Even a chant that's only three words can be shortened. If you master what I'm about to teach you, you'll be able to cast it without chanting at all."
Riveria forced herself back into focus, refusing to think about what had just happened.
Once Cid entered training mode, he wouldn't have the spare brainpower to think about anything else either.
This young man really shouldn't be entertaining such bold thoughts.
"Understood!"
Cid instantly snapped into the posture of a good student.
Seeing his attitude switch in an instant, Riveria nodded in approval.
He might have audacious thoughts—but at least he understood doing what needed to be done.
Serious. Concentrated.
No wonder he got along with Raul.
Compared to Raul's stiffness, Cid was also polite on the surface—yet inwardly, he was far too bold.
It was as if Raul saw himself as "lower," while Cid believed he could stand as an equal with anyone.
Such a powerful inner core… what an unbelievable young man.
"Take this. Now do exactly as I say…"
Riveria produced a magic staff and handed it to Cid, beginning her explanation.
Shortening chants wasn't truly a profound technique—it just usually wasn't necessary.
With teammates nearby and recovery potions available, you cast with as much output as you can; there's no reason to deliberately restrain yourself.
Rather than learning chant-shortening, most people would learn parallel chanting.
Cid's case was special: he needed chant-shortening to reduce output and consumption, making it feasible to practice on a daily basis.
"…Like this?" Cid asked.
Following Riveria's instructions, he worked carefully—earnest, and just a little clumsy.
Truthfully, Cid had never really studied chant-shortening before.
Chanting while unleashing magic was cool as hell, wasn't it?
Even if he didn't need a chant, he'd add one himself—so why would he research a method that removed chanting entirely?
Of course, his learning speed was far faster than what he showed on the surface.
Training chant-shortening felt a bit like "stopping right at the edge."
It wasn't an especially difficult technique—just uncomfortable to practice, and if you messed up your control, you could injure yourself.
"That's right. Now try using your magic," Riveria ordered.
Her face hardened; she fully entered strict-instructor mode.
In terms of magical control, she felt Cid still had a lot of room to improve.
But Cid's total magical capacity was greater than she had expected, and what he demonstrated was—by any normal standard—genius-level.
Riveria was elven royalty. For her to judge someone a "magic genius" was no small thing.
Yet in reality, this was already Cid deliberately holding back.
His compressed mana was far denser than ordinary mana; even after he diluted it on purpose, its "quality" still vastly exceeded a beginner's.
Cid displayed this level of talent to make his magic seem "reasonable."
A spell with limitless power was inherently abnormal. If he had no other strength to justify it, people would suspect something.
A mob character couldn't afford to be suspected of not being a mob.
"Good. Now join the fight," Riveria said, satisfied.
Cid left.
Riveria watched him go, then—seemingly without intent—glanced diagonally behind her.
The Dark Faction's scouts had followed them.
Three.
Knossos—the man-made labyrinth.
The Dark Faction's executives gathered in emergency session.
The reason for the commotion was obvious:
Riveria had entered the Dungeon.
After a brief exchange, the Dark Faction split into two camps.
"I don't get it!" Olivas slammed the table in front of Valletta. "Riveria is alone! She's Orario's strongest mage! She's even dragging a few burdens along—why don't we take this chance and kill her?!"
"Because you're an idiot," Valletta sneered—at Olivas, and at the entire radical camp. "Do you really think that 'Hero' would send Riveria into our territory without any preparation?"
Valletta had fought Finn for years. She understood him far better than the rest.
"Maybe he's counting on people like you. We've already scouted the area—there are no other powerhouses with her. How much combat power does a mage have when she's alone?"
Olivas still argued, refusing to let the opportunity go.
In Valletta's eyes, it was nothing but stubbornness.
"Riveria might be bait. Or she might just be a tool to divert our attention. But either way… Olivas, you dare raise your voice at me now?!"
Valletta had been about to explain—then remembered the betrayal from an ally not long ago, and anger burned the explanation right out of her.
Olivas was only Level 3.
Nominally an executive like her, but in truth, barely above the level of her dead subordinates.
The Dark Faction valued strength above all. So if Olivas dared challenge her openly… whose orders was he carrying?
With that thought, Valletta lost interest in explaining anything.
"…We're all executives. I spoke too harshly. Valletta, continue," Olivas finally backed down.
Valletta took the offered exit.
In the end, she still hated bright, orderly Orario more than she hated this fragile alliance.
How long would this brittle coalition even last?
"Hmph. No matter what deployment we choose, we can't act according to the enemy's wishes," Valletta declared. "Since Finn wants us to deal with Riveria, then we absolutely must not do that."
"Then we do nothing?" someone demanded.
"Of course not. We abandon the original timetable and move early. He plays his game—I play mine."
....
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