[The Young Lady and the NoName Wizard got injured during a duel!]
A chilling phone call directly to Duke Lorenzo Ricci.
“I barely finished dinner two hours ago, and now there’s a duel? What kind of nonsense is that?!”
He lost his mind and started yelling like a _whale_.
Getting injured in a properly equipped magic duel happens as rarely as an airplane crash.
But when it does occur, it usually results in at least a serious injury.
It was no surprise that the Chairman was overreacting.
“Who… who got hurt? How badly?”
“Who got hurt? Is it our Monica?”
Duke Ricci threw on his coat and burst through the bedroom door.
The Young Lady followed him out in her pajamas.
‘Please, don’t tell me it’s the NoName Wizard who got hurt…’
A fleeting thought crossed the Chairman’s mind.
[The Young Lady has injured her side and thigh.]
“How did that happen…”
The Chairman let out a complicated sigh.
He was relieved that it wasn’t NoName who got hurt, but rather Monica.
Just having that fleeting thought made him feel guilty as a father.
And it couldn’t be helped.
Just the fact that a new employee assaulted the head of a client on the first meeting would make the local news’ front page.
Especially since the head is one of the most recognized figures in the world.
If that happens, the Ricci family would be in a permanent state of incapacitation.
Duke Ricci pushed aside the horrific thoughts that hadn’t happened and heard the situation on-site.
Monica was immediately transferred to the hospital after her personal doctor’s diagnosis.
Upon hearing the whole story, the Chairman’s face turned red again.
“Not only did she go to the room of the Wizard who’s resting to pester her for a duel, but she also got injured due to improper barrier settings? This thoughtless girl, right before the Super Cup? Who were the idiots that allowed this duel?!”
“Calm down, dear. Don’t raise your voice in front of the kids.”
“How can she be so… childish?”
By the time they arrived at the hospital, Na-me and Professor Cheon were standing side by side.
“We’re sorry. My daughter’s important tournament is coming and Na-me…”
“No, it’s not like that. I heard on the way that it was all Monica’s fault. Is the Wizard okay?”
“Yes, I’m fine. But I feel so embarrassed to see you, Chairman. I should have verified this once more.”
“Don’t worry, Wizard. Monica will learn something from this incident.”
Duke Ricci awkwardly smiled.
Na-me was more than fine; there wasn’t even a scratch on her skin.
Compared to Professor Cheon beside her, she was overwhelmingly small.
‘Did that child’s barrier of particle energy shatter in one hit?’
Small body, destructive power, and boundless knowledge born from youth.
The more he got to know her, the less he understood.
“Hey, kneel, big sis. Raise your arms straight. If you want to win hearts, you have to do it like this, okay?”
“No, it’s me who almost got humiliated after being invited to someone else’s house. Sigh, if being strong is a sin, then I guess it is.”
“Still, it’s not like your fault is zero either. Experience says it’s better to apologize and wrap things up quickly when you can.”
When blended with the silver-haired artificial lifeform, her youthful appearance sometimes stood out.
Soon, the hospital room door opened, and Monica came out in a wheelchair.
She looked notably drained after just a few hours.
“They say five weeks of recovery. Maybe four at the earliest…”
Five weeks of recovery, a moment that breaks a parent’s heart.
Monica’s mother stroked her youngest daughter’s head, comforting her sadness.
Even though he was furious, Duke Ricci couldn’t express his anger.
He stared intensely at the broadcast being relayed live.
‘There’s no way this was intentional, right?’
He shook his head and gently touched Monica’s shoulder.
“Father?”
“For now, focus on rehabilitation. It would be a waste of what you prepared. I’ll help you return to the match.”
“Ah, okay…”
Monica nodded.
After the groups left, the hospital returned to silence.
Was it the first time that her father said something like that, even if insincerely?
Monica felt a strange sensation and smiled wryly.
Meanwhile, Na-me, wrestling with the viewers, stood beside Monica’s wheelchair.
“Hey, you’re talking about some honorable death. Monica will rehabilitate and compete in the Super Cup, you know. Don’t say ridiculous things, everyone.”
-Monica-chan, fighting!
-Why you absolutely shouldn’t spar with Na-me before a match.
-I can really feel it now, the human weapon. I was wondering why she’d get injured during training.
-Monica Ricci was also a genius type?
-If she can’t compete due to injury, it would be so unfair.
-Please return the hope of Italyㅠㅠㅠ
-But the duel was initiated by them first.
-So has NoName gotten stronger? Does that even make sense?
“Thank you, Na-me. But only six weeks left. Honestly, I’m saying I’ll do my best in front of Father, but if I can’t win, I’d rather withdraw.”
“What kind of nonsense is that?”
“Honestly, it’s funny. Just because of one mistake in setting a barrier, I’m out of the match? And then six weeks later, I’m going to be in an even worse state than yesterday. Nobody wants that kind of farce, not even me, or the audience, or everyone in this world.”
“Hah.”
Na-me sighed softly.
She had put in effort to generate a favorable public sentiment for Monica, only for Monica’s weak mindset to ruin all those precious efforts.
“Even though we weren’t at full power, it was a sparring match, so you could gauge your abilities. How did I look, Na-me?”
“Honestly? A mess. You rushed in without even recalling your magic circle. What kind of clueless strategy is that?”
It was worlds apart, unlike Na-me’s case.
At least Na-me displayed the ability to recycle long-range attack magic circles into acceleration magic circles.
“Haha…”
“But I actually appreciate that.”
“Huh?”
“Whether Monica realized it herself or if the coaches advised her to do so, I have no way of knowing. But it’s effective for resolving your persistent issues.”
In other words, the details were off, but the general direction was somewhat correct.
‘Did she lose to Giselle Fischer just out of bad luck? No.’
She only let her guard down because Monica had been distracted.
But a perfectionist like Monica wouldn’t have let her guard down in a significant tournament like the national exchange tournament’s round of 16.
So where was her focus?
“I believe that once Monica sets her mind to it, she can easily win the Super Cup. She just needs to fix one thing.”
Na-me guided Monica into the hospital room.
She would need to stay here for at least a month for rehabilitation.
“Oh, I’m so sleepy. I’m tired, so I’m going to head to bed. See you tomorrow if we can.”
“Goodbye, Monica! Don’t overdo it and get some good rest!”
“You have to tell me what to fix before you go!”
Monica reached out desperately, but Na-me merely leaned in to wave goodbye.
“Lady Saetbyeol, don’t stress too much and sleep well. You’ll be fine in a month anyway.”
Thud-
The cold hospital door closed.
Na-me, busy with schedules for the next day, knew she couldn’t hold onto Monica forever.
With the help of nurses, Monica lay on her bed, blinking as she fell deep into thought.
She had long since corrected all her bad habits through rigorous training and education.
Yet, as she pondered what Na-me might find unsatisfactory…
Srrrhh-
Monica used her luscious hair as a sleep mask, wrapping up a suffocating day in slumber.
*
Chairman Lorenzo Ricci hoped that Monica would take management classes like her older siblings.
Monica wished to seek more advice from me on magic duels.
Thus, the visit to Parmindustria and the Human Technopolis research institute would be alongside Monica in her wheelchair.
“Wow, you look like a sickly Young Lady.”
“Na-me, would you like to sit on my lap? Hehe.”
“I’ll pass.”
“Why not?!”
Was she really asking out of curiosity, or did she have other expectations?
I’m the CEO of a company right now, you know?
“By the way, have you thought about what the problem is?”
“No, even after thinking it over, I really don’t know.”
“I’ll let you know later. No point in discussing it now; it won’t change much.”
“Then why not tell me now?”
“I don’t know the details either?”
“Huh…?”
“NoName Wizard, this is the Technopolis Research Institute.”
As the Chairman started talking again, the conversation halted.
First-year High Schooler Monica instantly became a human screen.
Oh, she couldn’t stand; so maybe she wasn’t a screen?
Still, being the clever friend, she worked hard to pick up various conversations among the executives.
I used the travel time to impart advanced secrets of dueling.
“This is something I’m not sharing with just anyone. Only Monica can know it.”
Perk-
Not that it was anything major, but it was cute how she perked up her ears and came closer, so I always set the stage beforehand.
“It’s an advanced quantum transition in runes. In real life, it’s nearly useless, but it’s significant in dueling magic. The foundation for maintaining the magic circle starts with placing rune spells effectively. If you find an unstable anchor spell, it can be cast similarly!”
“Huh?”
“So, when it comes to these related magic circles, creating counter formulas is very very difficult. Even with slight adjustments to the coordinates, it’s the same magic, but the runes automatically change.”
I would give her an example.
This was a method I devised after the national exchange tournament when I got tired of Cecilia’s counter magic formulas.
It’s way faster than inserting the bothersome QKD encryption formula each time.
“Wait a minute! This is too complicated!”
“I never said it was easy.”
If it were easy, anyone could do it.
To win first place sometimes means having to swallow bitter medicine.
Monica would only eat lunch with us and then visit the hospital in the afternoon.
The main dish of grilled salmon wafted with steam.
“Na-me, what are you interested in these days? I heard you bought a game company the other day.”
“That’s a long-term plan. These days, I’m thinking about birthday presents.”
“Oh, birthday presents!”
“Tomorrow is my dad’s birthday. I didn’t take care of it well last year.”
“Ah! Why not last year?”
“Well… it was a socially isolated period…?”
“Huh? Ahh, I see…!”
Clears throat
Monica glanced around at the empty sky, whistling.
They returned to the topic of birthday presents and fell into thought about a suitable gift.
“Doesn’t your father have any hobbies?”
“I don’t think he has any specific hobbies. He watches the news, reads journals, and occasionally watches V-tube. That’s about it.”
“Doesn’t he exercise? He looks really fit.”
“He doesn’t do that kind of exercise. Now that I think about it, he seems to enjoy hiking.”
“Then I bet he likes fishing too!”
Monica clapped her hands.
“Just because he likes hiking doesn’t mean he likes fishing.”
“There’s a place near Lake Como where you can fish. You can take a boat over and go to Bellagio too.”
“He seems to enjoy family trips. I feel like it would be great to have a special gift.”
“A special gift… maybe fishing… a boat…”
After a long deliberation, I was curious to see what idea she’d come up with.
As I popped the last piece of salmon into my mouth, Monica proposed an idea.
“Na-me, are you good at playing an instrument?”
“I manage just fine.”
“Perfect! How about wearing Disney princess outfits and having a concert on a boat? Oh my gosh, that’d be too cute! What can we do?!”
While her face bloomed with joy, my expression was instantly rotting away.
“No thanks, just pick something normal like a bag or something.”
“I’ll shoot a text to Saetbyeol for her opinion!”
“Wait, no!”
If she spills it to her…
Ding-ling-
A reply came within a second.
[Cheon Saetbyeol: Hehehehe]
