High Mobility Metabolism... Not really mobility.

Since Teisha prepared the bathwater, we each cleaned our bodies in our respective rooms. Even though we had done it together in one room before, it was still embarrassing. Well, that's how things are. After finishing the laundry and changing clothes, Riz came to visit.

"Should we go to sleep?"

We got into bed together. Thinking about the magic from earlier, I tried something mischievous just for fun.

Blowing out a candle in my mind, I performed magic near the flame of the candle without reciting any incantations. I imagined the result in my head and focused on making it happen.

The candle flickered and went out, leaving the surroundings dark. Nice! That's what no-incantation magic feels like. Once you get the image down, it becomes easy.

When studying programming, at first you're drilled with each command, variable, and parameter to understand their meanings thoroughly. Then you move on to larger processes and more complex tasks, repeating this endlessly. Honestly, while it was tedious back then, now I appreciate how it laid the foundation.

Magic seems similar. In elementary stages, you probably just execute commands to learn what effects they produce through experience. At middle levels, you use the knowledge and experience gained to develop a clear image of the desired outcome. At higher levels, you practice using that imagery in simulators repeatedly. I haven't experienced it firsthand, but based on my student life and work in systems engineering, I can imagine how it works.

"Hey, are you going to sleep?"

As I was talking, Riz started dozing off, so I let her fall asleep. After confirming she was asleep, I set the alarm on my phone earlier than usual and changed it to a vibration mode.

"Goodnight, sweet dreams."

I kissed her forehead again before falling asleep.

In the morning, I woke up to the vibrating phone in my hand. I operated the phone to stop the alarm. Riz was still sleeping soundly. I kissed her cheek, got dressed quietly, and left the house unnoticed, taking my spear with me.

From yesterday's incident, I wanted to conduct an experiment.

I imagined wind coming from the soles of my feet and floating in the air.

My body floated gently.

"Of course."

When I released the image, my body dropped back down. Did the kinetic energy remain?

Again, I floated and imagined moving forward, backward, left, right, and spinning. It was like controlling a unit in a game where you use two joysticks or assemble robots to fight, hovering low with thrusters.

My body moved smoothly with some pressure as I imagined it. To stop, I focused on the image of reverse thrust pressure. Of course, I also imagined not being crushed by the pressure.

Gradually increasing my speed, I circled around the yard. This new sensation was amazing. It felt similar to skating. But given my body type, I thought it was like a black star with three marks.

I treated the tree in the yard as an enemy, dashed forward with momentum, and thrust my spear. A significant impact came back through the spear. Okay, this should be manageable. Switching to the spear, I slid backward again, built up speed, and thrust it into the tree. The difference compared to running and thrusting was enormous. I hacked at it and pulled the spear out.

Continuing to circle around, I placed reticles on nearby trees and fired as if using a strong air gun. Patter patter sounds echoed.

Approaching the trees, I saw that they had light scratches exactly where I aimed.

I confirmed again while circling whether I could fire with curved trajectories. Imagining sudden appearances of allies, I checked if I could stop mid-flight with slower projectile speeds. Everything worked.

A deep sense of emotion welled up inside me.

"Magic is so free."

It will take some time to get used to it and practice. Even though I've been using this a lot, neither 'Spell Control' nor 'Wind Magic' have increased. This must be outside the scope of those skills, like a cheat code.

Still, that's fine.

"I can fight in high-speed combat now."

As someone who is out of shape and a bit overweight, this discovery more than compensates for my disadvantages in movement during battle or charging forward with momentum. While it doesn't directly increase attack power, yesterday's realization makes up for it. In battle, the strength of individual attacks has limits. There's no need to chase that. If I can stir up the battlefield, that's excellent. Speed is power.

I clenched my fists and raised both arms high, jumping around.

"What's going on?"

Riz had woken up and came out into the yard, asking curiously.

"Did something good happen? You're so excited."

Running over to her, I hugged her tightly.

"Yes, yes!"

I lifted her up right there and spun around. Holding her close, I carried her princess-style.

"Eh? Eh?"

She seemed embarrassed and confused.

"This is too close. It's embarrassing..."

I couldn't stop now. I continued moving slowly, gradually increasing my speed as I glided around the yard.

"What is this?"

As we circled the yard, spinning around, she asked.

"It's magic. I discovered it yesterday."

Her hair shimmered golden in the morning sunlight.