Aurora's Test

With a trace of anticipation in her voice, Aurora queried, "I have another spell. Would you like to learn that too?"

"Hmm" Alex eagerly nodded, his enthusiasm for learning new spells apparent.

"This time, the spell is a bit different, special in a way, you might say."

Aurora then conjured a Tier-2 magic spell in her hand, refraining from disclosing the details of the spell this time.

Alex quickly learned the spell and muttered, his voice tinged with puzzlement, "Mana Drain?"

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[The host has learned a new magic spell]

<Mana Drain>

Tier: 2

Affinity: Dark

Mana Cost: N/A

Mastery: F

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"Huh? Mana Drain? Is it a spell where I can drain mana from others and absorb it for myself?" Alex asked with surprise, clearly not expecting a spell of this nature.

Aurora confirmed, "Uhh, yes, it exactly does that."

'Is it really a Tier-2 spell? It seems very powerful and useful.'

"So cool! I want to try this spell out. Where can I experiment with it?" Alex's imagination ran wild with potential applications in battle.

Aurora quickly dispelled his enthusiasm, cautioning, "No, you can never use this spell recklessly, especially in front of someone."

"Huh? Why? Anyway, I'm not supposed to be able to use magic, remember?"

Aurora clarified, "I said you can't use this spell outside either because it's a forbidden spell. It's a vampiric magic circle, used by vampires and other dark creatures to drain the mana and vitality of others. This magic should not be known by humans at all, as someone might mistake you for a vampire or something."

Alex's heart sank upon hearing this, "What? Why are you teaching me this kind of dangerous magic? Does it have any side effects or something if a human uses it?"

"It has no such drawbacks; you can use it freely... just not in public. Originally, it was an ancient spell widely used by everyone. However, dark creatures, especially vampires, started abusing it, draining mana from their victims and leaving them to die for their pleasure."

'This may be forbidden or not, but it is really useful. It can help me replenish my mana easily and also save a lot of money and time, as mana potions are very expensive, and natural mana recovery takes time.'

"Is there any sort of limit or conditions for it to be used?"

Aurora explained, "You can use it as many times as your body can handle, as it uses stamina instead of mana. The only downside is that you need to touch your target to use it."

"So, how much mana can it drain?"

"It varies based on the mastery of the spell. With your current mana capacity, it can easily fully recharge your mana in one go, even if you've just learned it."

"I guess I will try this spell on monsters then," Alex casually commented.

"Then you're not upset with me?"

"Why should I be? Even though it's considered forbidden, it's a very useful spell."

Aurora listened with a hidden smile as Alex showed no qualms about learning this spell and even expressed eagerness to experiment with it.

'He really is different and doesn't mind learning spells created by witches.', thought Aurora, who had been secretly testing Alex, and the results far exceeded her expectations.

"Okay, then I will go to sleep. I have a lot to do from tomorrow."

"Good night, Alex." With that, Aurora floated away to another location.

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The following morning, Alex woke up as usual, had breakfast, and then headed to his classes. The day progressed normally, and his classes ended earlier than usual, leaving him with some free time to pursue his plan.

His agenda for the day was to train his swordsmanship with the help of his skill, the "Beginner Weapon Expert", which he had acquired the previous night. This passive skill enhanced his proficiency in using weapons.

To progress at the academy and earn points, Alex needed to leave the beginner class and advance to a higher level. In less than a month, he would have his quarterly advancement test, consisting of both theory and practical exams.

The practical exam involved a tournament-like setting where students had to face different opponents, increase their ranks, and achieve better scores to advance to the next class.

Alex arrived at the Knight faculty's training center, which was relatively empty due to ongoing classes. The center featured various areas for training with different weapons, including archery grounds and sword training areas.

Alex chose the common public training area, as he didn't want to use his academy points to access a private training room.

In this world, people who lacked talent for magic, often referred to as knights, fought using magic artifacts imbued with mana and magic spells.

He had a magic-infused sword given to him by the system, but it was still too heavy for him to wield effectively.

For now, he could barely manage to hold it straight and relied on its weight and slashing properties for monster hunting.

Alex selected a training sword from a pile of weapons. The one he picked was a longsword, considerably heavy.

As he held the sword, he began to grasp the basic principles of swordplay, and he realized how unrefined his previous attempts had been.

He approached a training dummy designed for sword practice and started slashing and stabbing it in various ways. With each move, his technique became less crude and more polished, though it remained slow and energy-inefficient.

'He's making better progress than he did during classes.' Aurora observed from the sidelines.

The skill gave Alex the understanding of how to use a sword proficiently, but he still needed to train and make it his own. The dummy, made from sturdy materials, remained unscathed after hours of practice.

As time passed, Alex became engrossed in his training, lost track of time, and missed lunch. The empty training hall gradually filled with students as classes ended, and they came to train as well.

Out of breath and sweating, Alex finally noticed the presence of other students around him, and the noise of their chatter roused him from his training trance.

He took a break and sat on a nearby seat to drink some water and regain his lost stamina and strength.

"Can you tell me the time and how much time has passed?" he asked Aurora in a hushed voice.

"You've been training for more than 3 hours, and it's evening now." Aurora replied.

"What? You should have informed me sooner. I'm parched and hungry." Alex grumbled.

"Well, you were too focused, and I didn't want to disturb you." Aurora shrugged and explained.

After resting for a few minutes, Alex decided to go in search of something to eat.

"Well, so this is where the pipsqueak was. You've been avoiding me a lot lately."

As he was leaving, an enraged, mocking voice came from behind, halting Alex in his tracks.