Father, I Won’t Do Anything

-Diamid, where in the world have you been!

In his childhood, Diamid had once climbed to the top of a tree while practicing wind magic, without realizing it himself.

Of course, he had come down shortly after…

However, expending mana was quite draining, so Diamid had briefly dozed off on the tree before using magic again.

The gentle breeze, the warm temperature – it was the perfect condition for a weary young boy to take a nap.

When everything came to light later, his parents had scolded him.

-Everyone says we’re blessed to have a genius son, but don’t make me laugh. You’re giving your father so much grief. Do you know how long we searched for you? We deployed the entire knight order!

-I’m sorry, father.

-One day you’ll have a child just like you. Then you’ll understand how tormented I felt.

A child just like him…

The aura of wind caressing the girl’s body.

It meant it didn’t come from an external force.

‘This child also possesses a wind affinity.’

He had thought, being of the Black Night clan lineage, she would only have dark attributes…

A magician’s attributes were almost always inherited from their parents, so considering the child’s mother, it was quite peculiar.

‘I clearly warned her not to seek attention, yet here she comes of her own accord.’

Before Diamid could address Jaina, a familiar voice reached his ears.

“You fool! Where did you go, using wind magic!”

It was his disciple, Mikael.

Diamid couldn’t recall Mikael ever raising his voice like this while searching for something.

For a late-teenager, Mikael behaved rather obediently, at least before him.

Though he seemed to engage in quite unhealthy mischief behind others’ backs, that was typical behavior for magicians.

Diamid paid no mind to Mikael’s actions out of his sight.

After all, it was a magician’s way to remain meek before the powerful while moving freely from behind.

“You worthless brat, you undergrown tadpole, you foolish runt running off again!”

For Mikael to be this frantic, scouring the Magic Tower like this…

Normally, he would have been cautious about making a commotion audible to Diamid.

“Is it that urgent?”

Despite his stern warning not to weaken himself…

‘Mikael is a valued talent for the Magic Tower.’

If he were to disappoint him again, the boy would surely lose all interest in magic and wallow in despair, as was human nature – weak and frail.

‘I have no choice. I can’t discard such talent.’

Whiiiing.

With a light wave of his hand, the wind rose at Diamid’s gesture and gently enveloped the child.

“Mmm… Mom…”

“…”

After a brief stir, the child soon fell back into slumbering softly.

As the wind carried the child away, Diamid slowly lowered his gaze.

-But Diamid, why did you climb that tree?

-It was said that mother is in the heavens, so…

Did this child perhaps share his own childhood musings?

-Father, I saw mother. I really did!

And like him, had she mistaken her dreams for reality?

Whiiiiing.

In the wind-swept dark tresses, he saw the reflection of his younger self.

A lonely child who couldn’t bear solitude.

* * *

Whether from overexerting her mana, though conscious, Jaina found herself unable to move her body. All she could see was pitch darkness.

‘When did I fall asleep?’

The lingering groggy sensation in her mouth suggested she had napped for quite some time.

A vague sense that much time had passed.

“When is this kid going to wake up? This better not be something bad.”

“Calm down. And be mindful not to make any loud noises, just in case.”

The voices were hushed yet distinct.

With eyes still closed, Jaina unconsciously quirked the corners of her mouth.

One man, one woman. Their voices were familiar to her.

‘I don’t want to wake up just yet…’

Perhaps it was due to the refreshing, cool breeze enveloping her.

She wished to remain immersed in this cozy feeling a while longer.

‘But if I don’t wake, they’ll worry.’

Though her body felt heavy, Jaina mustered her strength and managed to open her eyes.

“Why did you teach her wind magic…”

“She has talent for it, doesn’t she? And dark magic is only for offense… Eh?”

Raising his voice, Mikael abruptly paused and widened his eyes.

“Just where have you been?!”

Following Mikael’s gaze, Hilvenzia too let out a soft sigh.

“Whew, Jaina. You made quite the entertaining game of tag.”

“Sir Mikael? Lady Hilvenzia…?”

Upon opening her eyes, Jaina found their peering faces filling her vision.

Mikael’s brows were deeply furrowed, while Hilvenzia wore a faint smile, but she sensed a similar emotion from them both.

They had been worried about her.

Feeling an odd fluttering in her chest, Jaina asked in a constricted voice:

“What happened to me?”

“What do you mean, ‘what happened’? You went flying off again! I have no idea what happened after that!”

With an abashed look, Jaina scratched her head.

Mikael let out a deep sigh.

“At first, I thought your inability to control your magic was due to inexperience. But now, it doesn’t seem to be just that. Your mana affinity is… Wait a moment.”

As if realizing he had missed something, Mikael’s dubious expression turned contemplative as he regarded Jaina anew.

“If your mana affinity is high, you should have issues with other magic as well…”

“But I had no problems using dark attributes magic, did I?”

Suddenly, the flowing air felt strangely altered.

Jaina watched perplexed as the two exchanged glances.

“It’s because I lack talent for wind magic…”

“No, quite the opposite.”

This time, Hilvenzia spoke up.

“You have an abundance of talent for wind attributes. Too much, to the point of being uncontrollable.”

“Wind… attributes?”

It was a magic she had never thought to learn, assuming she lacked the talent for it.

After all, as a descendant of the Black Night clan, using only dark magic was the norm.

“You have more talent for wind attributes magic than dark attributes.”

Hilvenzia calmly observed Jaina with a fresh, unfamiliar gaze.

“Excluding your appearance, you take after your father in every way.”

“…”

Jaina tightly sealed her lips. She had wanted to respond as usual with ‘I don’t have a father,’ but the words wouldn’t come.

Influenced by a father she had thought unnecessary, a mere burden at best…?

Jaina bit her lip before changing the subject.

“By the way, was it sir Mikael who found me asleep in the tree and brought me here? Thank you for rescuing me.”

“What? It wasn’t me?”

Mikael looked as if he were hearing it for the first time.

“So you’ve been up in that tree this whole time? No wonder I couldn’t find you anywhere!”

She vaguely recalled meeting a pair of blue eyes while dozing…

If not Mikael, then who had moved her?

‘Was it just a dream?’

Jaina tilted her head in puzzlement.

Had it been her imagination?

Somehow, the wind that carried her had the familiar scent.

* * *

“Until you get accustomed to mana control, you’re banned from using wind magic.”

Mikael firmly stated it directly to Jaina’s face.

His unusually grave expression left Jaina unable to evade or protest.

“I promise.”

“Give me a clearer answer.”

Jaina nodded emphatically.

“I swear.”

“Good. A vow spell has been cast, so if you break it, I’ll be notified immediately.”

“But… I’ve only used that magic twice, so isn’t being unskilled natural?”

Though Jaina pursed her lips in protest, Mikael simply raised his chin stubbornly.

“Of course it was likely the easiest magic you’ve used so far. You’ll probably want to use it again.”

Mikael lifted his head.

“But based on my observations, you need to prioritize theory over practice. Your skills are quite lacking. No system at all. Let’s start with the theory first.”

‘Learning magical theory, can I finally study magic systematically?’

At the mention of learning theory, Jaina’s eyes sparkled as she clenched her small fists excitedly.

“I won’t give up and will study diligently.”

And so began the occasional magic theory lessons from Teacher Mikael.

“So the third law of mana control states… Actually, it’s like… Shak, shook, shak motions.”

“What are you talking about…?”

“I’m saying shak, shook, shak, you know? Aish, why can’t you understand?”

However, there was one issue. The genius Mikael was quite inept at teaching others.

“It’s because the author of this book is an idiot. In fact, everyone whispers about how many ended up with twisted mana from learning magic through this book. So let’s use a different book. Hmm, this one has fairly simple explanations. For an introduction to magic books, go with .”

Mikael handed Jaina a thick tome.

“If you become proficient in wind magic, even if not as much as the Tower Lord, you might become the next best magician after him since you can also freely use dark attributes magic. Ah, but I’d be next since I exist, wouldn’t I?”

“How long would it take to become such an outstanding magician?”

“At least thirty years? But I only needed ten.”

When Jaina chuckled, Mikael let out a mocking snort, his pride seemingly wounded.

“Hey, thirty years is still being generous. Without me, you’d need fifty years and still fall short. And thirty years is nothing to a magician, right? Look at that old hag Hilvenzia. Her outward appearance is youthful, but she’s actually over seventy? magicians who reach the pinnacle age slowly.”

Thirty years.

To Mikael, thirty years might not seem such a long time.

But…

‘I won’t even live another ten years.’

Jaina could only smile wryly.